


Somebody

by Ariel_Hedgehog



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Bones inspired, Canon-Typical Violence, Drama, F/F, Falling In Love, Family, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Investigations, Mystery
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-14 13:28:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 34,394
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28796172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ariel_Hedgehog/pseuds/Ariel_Hedgehog
Summary: Alex is ready to give up her love life for good. Life, however, has a surprise for her.
Relationships: Samantha "Sam" Arias/Alex Danvers
Comments: 27
Kudos: 78





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I've been working on this story for over a year. It was supposed to be something simple then it... exploded? It took a life of its own and has dragged me along. It kept me sane last spring, gave me something to do and a purpose. It's completely written so I won't make you wait too much between chapters. I hope you'll enjoy reading it! :)

_“Marry me.”_

_“Excuse me?”_

_“Seriously. Marry me. Please. I love you and I want to be with you forever!”_

_“Yes!”_

Alex shook herself out of her memories. She felt very stupid to think again about the spontaneous demand she had made to Maggie exactly a year ago today. A plate filled with hash brown, bacon and eggs sunny side up was placed in front of her with a cup filled with fresh coffee. Alex raised her head and thanked the waitress with a sad smile. The waitress left and Alex looked at her plate. The smiley face made by the eggs and bacon seemed to mock her. She grabbed her fork and jabbed the runny yolks. She started to eat out of habit more than hunger and let her mind wander.

_“Look at this house, it’s near a good school and it has three bedrooms. We could have an office and a guest room while we don’t have kids yet.”_

_“Alex, I don’t want children.”_

_“What?”_

_“I don’t want children. I like children but I never saw myself having some of my own. I’m sorry.”_

Alex had tried to convince Maggie to change her mind but she hadn’t bulged. Then she had tried to convince herself that it wasn’t a big deal and she could live without being a mother as long as she had Maggie. Three months after popping the question, she couldn’t live with herself anymore and she had told Maggie goodbye. She had dedicated herself to her work ever since. She even had started boxing to avoid drinking like she would have done in the past. It was hard to resist but she had promised her mother and her sister that she wouldn’t drink anymore and so far she had stuck to it. She didn’t go to AA meetings because she didn’t like to share and she didn’t need anyone’s help to stay sober.

Alex jumped when her plate was taken away and her cup refilled.

“Oh! Sorry, Alex, I thought you’d seen me. New investigation?”

“Nothing to be sorry about Sam, I was just lost in thought about my incredibly fascinating love life. I think I’m ready to give up and adopt a cat. Or a lizard.”

The waitress nodded with a sympathetic smile.

“I’ve been there before. But keep on looking, because maybe who you’re looking for is somebody in the next car, or somebody on the morning train, or somebody in the coffee shop that you walk by every day, or even somebody that you look at but never really see. Somewhere out there is somebody for you. You’re such an incredible woman, you will find somebody but you have to keep on looking. As I often say to my daughter, you can’t see the whole picture if you have blinkers on.”

Alex had a hard time to keep her tears at bay. She took a big gulp of coffee to get her emotions in check, put her cup back on the table and cleared her throat.

“Wow! I’ve known you for five years and it’s the first time that you mention that you have a daughter, Sam. How old is she?” Alex asked, ignoring the message of hope that Sam had tried to give her.

“Ruby is thirteen. And before you ask, yes I got pregnant when I was sixteen. We still have a piece of rhubarb pie, do you want it to go?”

Alex didn’t have the time to answer, Sam had already gone behind the counter with her dirty plate in one hand and the half empty coffee pot in the other. Alex took the time to finish her coffee before she picked up her things and went to the counter where Sam had put the slice of pie in a little grey box. Sam took the order for two customers before she gave the box to Alex with an apologetic smile.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have freaked out. I love my daughter and I’m very protective so I don’t like to talk about her at work.”

Alex took out her wallet.

“Don’t worry about it. How much for the pie?” she asked.

“Nothing. It’s a gift. If you don’t want it we’ll throw it away.”

Alex took the box and held it preciously in her arms.

“You can’t throw away this gift from the baking gods! Thanks for everything, Sam. Have a nice day!”

Sam looked at Alex leaving the diner in a better mood than when she had arrived. Mission accomplished.

“You know you’ll have to pay your little gift,” Jethro, the cook, mumbled. “Mister Stanley doesn’t like to lose sales.”

Sam sighed.

“I know but it was worth it.”

***

At the FBI headquarters, in the elevator that brought her to the floor where her office was, Alex looked at the people coming in and out instead of looking at her phone like she usually did. Sam’s wise words were haunting her. Keep on looking. But was she ready to find someone else? After being single for nine months, her body was begging _YES!_ Some nights, she was giving herself arms and wrists cramps trying to achieve satisfaction but she craved the warmth of someone else to share the pleasure with. She wasn’t interested in one night stands and in her heart and her mind, she knew that she would never find anyone to love her, even just for a night. Maggie had been her only chance and she had ruined it. Alex had to make big efforts to resist the temptation to take out her phone and text her ex.

The elevator’s door opened on the third floor and Alex quickly got out.

“Hold the elevator!” someone in front of Alex yelled and she turned to hold the door with her foot. A young woman with long and curly blonde hair ran inside the elevator and gave her a genuine smile of gratitude. Alex recognized Eve who worked two floors up in forensic accounting and barely had time to notice her lovely blue eyes before the doors closed. She blamed her libido for the spark that had just been lit in her body.

_Somebody that you walk by every day…_

Could Eve be that somebody? Maybe they could go for a cup of coffee at the diner and just chat. At least they had work in common so it would be a starting point.

Alex thought about it as she walked to her office. Inside, she placed the pie in a drawer, away from the eyes of her coworkers and promised herself not to touch it before the end of the day. Or maybe lunchtime. She was answering her emails when her desk phone rang.

“Danvers.”

“Agent Danvers, assistant-director Jones would like to see you immediately in his office,” Pamela, AD Jones’ administrative assistant, said.

Alex refrained herself from sighing. It was never a good thing to be called to the Principal’s office.

“Tell him I’ll be right there. Thanks.”

She hung up and ran a hand through her short auburn hair before she walked to the other side of the floor. She greeted Pam and knocked on the door of the AD’s office.

“Come in!”

Alex opened the door and entered.

“You wanted to see me, sir?”

“Ah! Agent Danvers! I want to introduce you to your new partner from Colorado Springs. Agent Siobhan Smythe this is your new mentor, Special Agent Alexandra Danvers. Agent Danvers, I want agent Smythe to learn how to work with Dr. Luthor’s team and specifically with Brian Dox. I want them to be a team like you and Dr. Luthor when Dox has his forensic anthropology degree.”

Alex shook hands with her new partner.

“That will be all, agent Smythe. Agent Danvers, there’s something else I want to talk to you about. Take a seat.”

Smythe left and Alex sat on a chair facing the desk. Jones took a file behind him and looked at Alex for a moment.

“I’m not sure you’ll like what I have to tell you but know that I have approval from High Up.”

Alex felt her heart beat faster. She was going to be fired or transferred to Alaska or worse, replaced! She tried to stay neutral but her brain was already looking for solutions.

“We’ve been reviewing your file and some people are very impressed by the exceptional work you’ve been doing in the last few years and especially since you’ve started to work with Dr. Luthor and her team. Which is why we’d like to promote you to Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge with the LA office.”

Alex was stunned. She hadn’t expected a promotion. Scratch that, she hadn’t expected a life-changing promotion.

“I... I don’t know what to say! May I think about it, sir? It’s a big decision to make and I want to be sure to make the right one.”

Jones looked at Alex with a little smile.

“I would have been very surprised if you had answered differently. I have to thank you, Director Marsdin now owes me a bottle of scotch and a dinner for two at the restaurant of my choice.”

Alex nervously laughed. She needed air and to be alone.

“You have two months to take your decision. We would assign you to work with Agent Booth and he’s on paternity leave. But whatever it is, the next thing I have to talk to you about is mandatory. You’ve been enlisted for a public relation class at Georgetown. The first class is this Friday from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Everything has been paid for, you only have to show up. Details have been forwarded to you by email.”

Going back to school? It could have been worse. At least now she had a good excuse to cancel the sister night Kara had demanded the day before. And it could be useful for her current and maybe future job.

“Is this class the reason why you weren’t sure of my reaction, sir?” Alex asked after taking a moment to absorb the information.

“There are not many agents who would be thrilled to go back to school. Especially for that kind of class,” Jones answered.

Alex chuckled.

“You’re probably right. Thankfully for you, I’m not like those agents.”

“I don’t doubt it, agent Danvers. You can go now, I think I’ve enough disturbed your day as it is.”

Alex got on her feet.

“Thank you, sir. For everything.”

She quickly left AD Jones’ office and walked straight up to her own, not looking at anyone. There was only a post-it not stuck on her screen waiting for her and she let out a sigh of relief. Smythe was with HR, she had a few minutes to herself.

Alex didn’t hesitate, opened the drawer and picked up the pie and a plastic fork and went to the bathroom where she locked herself in a stall. She usually didn’t eat sugar in the middle of the day but the pie was exactly what she needed and for a few blissful moments, she forgot all she had in mind while she emptied the box. Once the last bit of pie was eaten, she put aside everything about her promotion and what it entailed and focused on her new partner. She had hoped not having to go to L.I.S.K. that day but she knew introductions were easier when they didn’t happen in the middle of an investigation. Especially with her squintsquad.

Alex got out of the bathroom and went back to her office where Smythe was patiently waiting for her. Alex nodded at her.

“Alright, let’s get something clear. My mother and AD Jones are the only ones who can call me Alexandra. You can call me Alex or Danvers not ‘Ma’am’ or ‘Al’ or my full name. Got it?”

The other woman smiled.

“Got it. I’m Siobhan or Smythe. Not ‘Shiv’ or ‘Smith’. I think we’ll get along great.”

“I think so too. Let’s go, Siobhan, you have another new partner to meet.”

A few minutes later, the two agents were entering the Luthor Institute and Alex was quizzing Siobhan.

“What do you know about this place?” she asked while they waited for Siobhan’s ID and access card to be made.

“The Luthor Institute was founded in 1978 by Lionel Luthor, a microbiologist, and his wife Lillian who is a geneticist. They made loads of money from their great scientific discoveries and patented processes but it was all forgotten when their son Lex, a bioengineer, was arrested for illegal human experiments and mass murder when he built and voluntarily detonated a chemical bomb that killed 67 people and injured countless others just because he wanted to see the effects of the new chemical he had created. When Lionel died during Lex’s trial, Lillian was so heartbroken she went into early retirement and it’s their adoptive daughter, Dr. Lena Luthor, a brilliant forensic anthropologist, who inherited the Institute. She changed the name for the Luthor Institute for Scientific Knowledge, or L.I.S.K for short. They are now focusing on research on curing cancer, AIDS and other diseases and on forensic anthropology. She hired Mike Matthews to run the place for her because she prefers to be in the lab. In the last five years, she and her team have been helping the FBI to identify murder victims and catch killers,” Siobhan recited as if she was reading from Wikipedia. “I’ve read some of your investigations reports on my flight here and what you’ve all managed to accomplish is remarkable. I would even say impressive in some cases.”

“What’s impressive is the team and how much efficient it is,” Alex stated. “It’s a group effort based on all individual’s strengths.”

Alex hesitated but she knew she had to before Siobhan met with Lena.

“And... what else do you know about Dr. Luthor?” she asked casually.

“You mean do I know that she’s also a biologist and that she worked with her brother and she tried to stop him by coming to the FBI? That she was wearing a wire on the day he detonated the bomb and that she’s the reason why the death toll wasn’t higher because she managed to change a component in the bomb at the last minute? That she was one of the injured and almost killed when Lex realised what she had done and that he swore that he would kill her and has managed to orchestrate three attempts on her life from prison? I’ve done my homework when I received this assignment Danvers and even if I didn’t this story was pretty hard to miss in the media. Don’t worry, I won’t make it weird around Dr. Luthor.”

“Just... don’t even mention it. She’s... she can be... she’s particular but once you get to know her, she can be nice.”

“Noted.”

A few minutes later, new card in hand, the two agents entered the lab. Kara was the first to see them.

“Hey Alex! New investigation? Let me guess, drowned victim? Buried? Burned? On second thought, I’d rather not know. I’ll know soon enough.”

Kara’s disgusted face made Alex smile. Of all the team members, she was the only one who couldn’t get used to bodies in different states of decomposition. Alex couldn’t blame her since some investigations had brought in some bodies in particularly bad shape.

“Kara, this is Agent Siobhan Smythe, my new partner. Siobhan, this is my sister, Kara Danvers. She’s a specialist on forensic facial reconstruction and she’s a genius with computers,” Alex said.

Kara shook Siobhan's hand but looked at her sister.

“New partner, Alex? You didn’t tell us. You know how the others are, they…”

“I know, Kara,” Alex interrupted. “I was told I had a new partner about an hour ago and I thought it would be a good idea to introduce Siobhan to the team before we have a new case.”

Kara thought for a moment, still shaking Siobhan’s hand. The agent watched the discussion between the sisters without saying a word. Alex nodded toward their hands and Kara realized that she hadn’t released Siobhan.

“Oopsie!” she laughed as she let go. “Sorry agent Smythe, I’m easily distracted. Welcome to L.I.S.K! If you need me, my office is at the end of the hall, last door on the right.”

“As far away as possible from the smells of the lab,” Alex mumbled.

Kara glared at her.

“Where there is the best natural light. Please excuse me, I have to go back to my pencils. There is a soldier from World War I who’s waiting for me to reconstruct his face so he’ll be identified before we send him back to his family.”

Kara left, ignoring her sister. Alex sighed and Siobhan chuckled.

“I feel like I’m hearing my sister. She… Whoa! What’s that smell?” she exclaimed, pinching her nose.

A young man was passing in front of the two women, pushing a cart where a delivery box was sitting and stinking.

“These are bear scat that Dr. Luthor sent me from Montana. You better get used to weird smells if you want to work with us. Winn Schott, entomologist, botanist and mineralogist. Welcome to the team agent Smythe.”

Siobhan was surprised.

“How...”

Alex rolled her eyes.

“He reads lips. Winn, how many times do I have to tell you not to do that? And Lena left for Montana without me? Do we have a new investigation that nobody told me about?”

“And as I already told you, Alex, I don’t waste time on useless social interactions. Dr. Luthor said, and I quote, that she was a big girl who could take care of herself and that you didn’t have to be disturbed today because an overzealous sheriff thinks a grizzly bear ate a human baby when it’s probably a raccoon. She will call you if it’s indeed a human baby and she will be back tomorrow at the latest. Bring Brian if there’s an emergency and I’m not a messaging system, just call her or text her or send smoke signals, I don’t care!”

Winn left with his cart, leaving behind an exasperated Alex and stunned Siobhan.

“Wow! Are they all so… intense?” she asked.

“More or less depending on the individuals. Don’t worry about it, when everyone gets used to you and you to them and you have figured out how they work, everything will be okay,” Alex reassured her.

She realized that she was going to train her replacement if she accepted the new job. Determined not to think about it for now, she pulled Siobhan toward the offices. She was about to knock on Mike Matthews’ door but stopped when she noticed that he was on the phone. Mike saw her and waved her in.

“She just got here, John. Alright. Tee time is 7 a.m. on Friday. Excellent. Bye.”

Mike hung up and smiled to the agents.

“Alex! Nice to see you! And you must be agent Smythe. Welcome to our big family. It’s a bit weird but it’s warm and welcoming.”

They shook hands and it was normal this time, much to Siobhan’s relief.

“Alex, if you don’t mind, I have some paperwork for agent Smythe to sign and I’d like to talk with her a few minutes.”

Alex exchanged a look with her new partner who nodded.

“No problem, Mike. I’ll be in Kara’s office. We’ll go meet Brian when you’re done.”

Alex waved goodbye to Mike and quickly walked to her sister’s office. Kara was bent over her drawing board when Alex came in without knocking.

“What’s going on with you?” Alex asked softly. “Usually you manage to fool people to think you’re not one of the geeks.”

Kara almost snapped her pencil in two before she put it down and adjusted her glasses.

“It’s nothing. I promise I’ll make a better impression on your new partner. Where is she? Did you leave her alone with Brian already?”

Alex let herself slump on the couch in the corner of the big room. During long investigations, she would usually take refuge in her sister’s office to work when the scientists were waiting for results or working on tests too complicated for her.

“Mike had paperwork for her to sign. And I wanted to talk about sister night tomorrow,” Alex explained.

Kara immediately perked up.

“I’m already stocked on ice cream and the DVDs are ready. _Wizard of Oz, Singing in the rain, Swing Time_ and _The Gay Divorcee_. I didn’t put _Meet me in Saint-Louis_ because I’m not sure we’ll have time to watch it.”

Alex looked embarrassed.

“Kara…”

“Alright, we’ll watch it too. I have nothing planned the next day anyway.”

“Kara!”

Alex’s voice stung like a whip. Kara noticed her sorry face.

“I’m sorry, Kara…” Alex started.

“Alex you promised! I barely see you since your break-up because you’re always working! I need to see my sister and talk with her like we used to do! Please! I really don’t need someone else cancelling their plans with me today!”

Alex heard the sadness in Kara’s voice and saw the tears threatening to spill. She definitely needed her big sister. She got up and took her sister in her arms.

“I’ve been ordered to take a class at Georgetown. It’s on Friday nights starting this week. I can’t say I won’t go because my sister wants to spend time with me. But I’m free tonight if you want to watch a movie or two.”

Kara nodded in Alex’s neck.

“I don’t have anything planned tonight anymore. Are you going to tell me what’s going on in your life since Maggie left?” she asked.

“If you tell me what’s going on in your life and tell me who made you so sad so I can kick their ass,” Alex answered.

She let go of Kara who dried her eyes with her shirt sleeve.

“I’m going to get Siobhan before Mike gives her a complete tour of the Institute. I’ll come get you when my shift is over?”

Kara nodded.

“If your shift ends later than 5 p.m., I’ll come get you and force you out of your office.”

“Pffff! You and what muscles?” Alex teased before she ran away.

She found Siobhan in the middle of the central platform where the preliminary exams took place. Brian was explaining something with too much enthusiasm and Siobhan seemed both fascinated and scared.

“Sorry to interrupt you Brian, but I have to bring back agent Smythe to the FBI headquarters, she has a lot of paperwork to do. Have a good day!”

Brian barely had time to mumble that he wasn’t done before the two agents had left the room.

“Thanks! He was interesting to listen to but a bit too intense for a first meeting,” Siobhan said.

“He often needs to be brought back to Earth but he’s very good at what he does. You seemed to get along?”

“Yeah. I think we’re going to make a good team over time.”

The rest of the day went by quickly. Alex explained where she was in her investigations and what to expect in the next few days, unless they had a new case assigned to them.

At 5 p.m. on the dot, Alex was back in her sister’s office.

“Do you mind if we stop by the grocery store before going to my place?” Kara asked. “I’m out of popcorn and chocolate.”

Alex agreed and a few minutes later the sisters were entering the grocery store. Alex grabbed a shopping basket and patiently followed her sister who took over ten minutes deciding which chocolate bar she wanted. She finally placed a bag of M&Ms and a box of Turtles in the basket next to the Reeses and Kitkat that Alex had already put. Alex quickly grabbed a box of microwavable popcorn and almost pushed Kara out of the candy alley toward the register.

“Oh look, Alex! Slushie! Come on, let’s get some, it’ll be perfect!”

Alex didn’t feel like arguing about the amount of sugar already in their basket. She took a small plastic cup and filled it with purple grape slushie while Kara filled her huge cup with electric blue and neon yellow. Once everything was paid, the sisters walked toward the exit. Alex took a sip of her drink and thought that maybe Kara had been right. It was perfect.

The second after, she was sprawled on the ground, completely stunned, her white shirt covered in purple slushie.

“Alex!” Kara yelled before she helped her up slowly. “Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

Alex tried to remove the slushie from her shirt and to keep it away from her skin.

“It’s cold! What happened?”

“It’s my fault,” someone on the ground said. “I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

Alex looked at the woman getting up from the ground.

“Sam? What are you doing here?”

Sam looked at the cup of slushie on the floor while trying to remove the purple substance from her clothes.

“I’m making a mess apparently.” She looked up and saw Alex with her stained shirt. “Alex? I am so sorry! I didn’t hurt you, did I? Oh no, your shirt is ruined! I’m so sorry! I’ll pay for a new one. Just bring me the bill and I’ll pay you back! I’m so sorry! Are you sure you’re not hurt?” she rambled.

She looked on the verge of tears and Alex place a reassuring hand on her arm.

“I’m not hurt. Are you hurt?”

Sam shook her head.

“Everything is fine then. Don’t worry about the shirt, a little dye will fix it.”

Sam shook herself back in control.

“You’re right. I’m sorry, my day was crazy and I lost my nerves. Free coffee for you until the end of the month and it’s not negotiable. I have to go, Ruby's waiting for me at school. See you tomorrow, Alex!”

Sam ran away in the store, leaving the two sisters with the store clerk who came to clean up the mess. A few minutes later, they were back in Alex’s car and she drove toward her house.

“Uh… Alex? My apartment is that way.”

Alex glared at her sister.

“In case you haven’t noticed, I look and smell like a giant walking grape. I need to change. And we can watch movies at my place.”

“You have clothes at mine,” Kara started before she changed her mind. “But you’re right, we can watch movies and eat pizza at your place. So, what’s with this new partner and going back to school?”

Alex told her about her meeting with AD Jones while she drove. Once they arrived, Alex went to change quickly and gave soft clothes to Kara so she could do the same. Without consulting each other, the sisters brought everything they would need to the living room. Food, drinks, blankets, everything was within hand reach when Alex started the movie.

“Are you going to accept the offer?” Kara asked in the first few minutes of _A Night to Remember_.

Alex sighed.

“I don’t know. I’d be lying if I said that I never thought about it but I never thought I’d had to move on the other side of the country to get it. Working with agent Booth would be very fulfilling and rewarding, he’s a great agent, but it would mean leaving all of you and… getting further away from Maggie… I know it’s stupid but this city is a link to her and I don’t know if I'm ready to let it go yet.”

Alex couldn’t stop her voice from shaking and she swallowed the sob. Kara sneaked out a hand from under her blanket to under Alex’s and grabbed her hand.

“You still have feelings for her?”

“In a way, I’ll always have feelings for her,” Alex said softly. “She was the first who completely understood me and who showed me the way to know who I really am. There’s a part of me that still wishes she’ll change her mind and come back to me but I know it’s not going to happen so I have to let her go. And I know it’s been months but it’s not easy. Maybe this opportunity is a good step towards that. Maybe it would be easier to move on in another city where everything I see doesn’t remind me of her. I’ll… seriously think about it. It would be good for my career.”

‘ _It’s the only thing I have left anyway_ ’ she thought bitterly.

The two sisters concentrated on the movie until their pizza was delivered. As soon as the last bite was eaten, Kara jumped on her box of Turtles and started to eat one treat after the other as Alex watched, mesmerized. After the tenth chocolate in a row with barely a pause, Alex forcefully took the box from Kara’s hands and kept it away from her.

“Enough! What’s going on with you?”

Kara crossed her arms on her chest.

“Nothing! Give me back my chocolates!” she protested.

Alex didn’t move. Kara grabbed a cushion and threw it at Alex’s face.

“Ow! You know I can arrest you for that?” Alex yelled as she massaged her aching nose.

“Pfff! We both know you won’t do it!” Kara mocked. “Mom would never forgive you. And it didn’t hurt that much.”

Alex grumbled because she knew her sister was right. Then she had an idea.

“If you don’t want to tell me what’s going on, then the next movie we watch is _Nosferatu_.”

Kara grabbed a second cushion.

“You know it gives me nightmares!” she complained.

“My house, my rules.”

Kara put down the cushion. Alex had just given her a better weapon.

“So next time you’re coming to my place, we’re watching _Pitch Perfect_ ,” she calmly stated.

Alex groaned. She hated being beaten at her own game.

“Fine! Fine. Keep your little secrets. I’ll get the truth eventually.”

Kara sighed.

“I had planned to spend time with someone last night and tonight but it didn’t work out at the last minute. I don’t want to talk about it because it makes me sad and I’m not ready to deal with my emotions like a responsible adult,” she explained after a moment of silence.

Even if Alex was dying to question her sister to have all the details, she felt that Kara needed time. She got out of her blanket and went to change the movie while Kara went to make popcorn in the kitchen. When she came back with a full bowl, she had no choice but to sit underneath the same blanket as Alex since she had reorganized it. Snuggled under the blanket, the sisters quietly munched on the popcorn while watching _The Sound of Music_.


	2. Chapter 2

A few hours later, the sound of birds happily chirping outside woke Alex up. She slowly got off the couch to let Kara sleep peacefully and when to her home gym in the basement. After an hour of yoga, she went to take a shower as the coffee machine started. Kara was still sleeping when Alex drank her first cup of coffee while reading the news online. She drank a glass of orange juice while making pancakes for Kara and a bowl of fruits and granola for herself.

“Rise and shine, sleepy head! The Alex mobile leaves in 45 minutes with or without you!” she called.

Kara grumbled then got up and slowly joined Alex in the kitchen. Alex gave her coffee and pancakes then started to eat her own breakfast. Fifteen minutes later, Alex was washing the dishes and letting it out to dry while Kara was starting her second pancake. The sisters left at the time imposed by Alex despite Kara’s lack of speed in the morning.

“Do you want me to leave you at the Institute or at your place? I can wait while you get changed,” Alex offered.

“You can leave me at the Institute. I have a change of clothes for when Brian and Winn’s stupid experiments go haywire and I end up covered in various fluids.”

Alex laughed. That kind of incident had happened a few times and she had been a victim of those experiments in the past. Once they reached their destination, Kara hesitated before she opened the door.

“Alex? Thank you for last night. I really miss spending time with you as sisters. Whatever you decide for your career, I’ll support you and I know you’ll make a great job.”

“I had a great time too,” Alex told her. “I’ll try to save time for you more. Have a nice day!”

“You too!”

The next evening, Alex arrived just in time for the beginning of the class. She took the last seat, to her surprise a single seat at the back of the room like she preferred. The class was interesting but there was a lot to cover. Alex quickly understood that she would have to cut back on overtime if she wanted to do all the assignments. During the break, she was surprised to see a teenage girl of about twelve coming up from the front of the class. Probably a child genius who was going to change the world.

After the class, Alex hesitated between going for a run or swing by work to grab a cold case file she could work on during the weekend. Considering the fact that she had just spent several hours sitting and making her brain work, she decided to go for a run.

Since she didn’t have an active case and she hadn’t pick up a cold case to occupy her weekend, she decided to start her readings for her class. Her Saturday passed rather quickly and she watched a horror movie while she ate her dinner and indulged herself in all the chocolates Kara had left the day before. Her Sunday morning started very early when she had to go investigate a body found in a salt truck. The squints were already on scene when she arrived and she saw Siobhan arguing with a man she knew well.

“It’s my investigation, you have no jurisdiction here,” the man said impatiently.

“The truck has crossed states lines, it’s our case,” Siobhan replied.

“Don’t you think it’s a bit early to be arguing? Alex interrupted. “Good morning, James, how have you been?”

James smiled at her.

“Hey Alex, I’ve been good. Being a dad is not what I expected but I’ve never been happier. How about you?”

“Keeping busy. I should be able to come see Lucy soon and meet the munchkin.”

It was just too hard to be around babies sometimes and have this dread in her stomach that she would never have one of her own. She had avoided visiting James and Lucy as much as she could but she knew she couldn’t put it off forever.

“I see that you’ve met my new partner,” Alex continued. “Agent Siobhan Smythe, this is Detective James Olsen with Metro PD. He’s the liaison officer with the FBI and a friend. What brings us out this morning?”

Siobhan crossed her arms on her chest and let James take the lead.

“A body was found this morning in this salt truck. I think it might be the bride that has been missing for three weeks. I’ll need help from L.I.S.K to identify her. That is if you don’t take the case from my hands.”

Lena got down from the truck.

“We will need Dr. Grant’s help for this one. It’s too much flesh for me.” She frowned at Siobhan. “Who are you? This is a crime scene you can’t be here.”

“Lena, this is agent Siobhan Smythe, my new partner. She will be forming a team with Brian like me and you.”

Lena frowned even more.

“Who decided that? The FBI has no jurisdiction on how I manage my team.”

“Maybe you should talk to Mike when you get to the lab,” Alex suggested.

“Don’t think I won’t! What we do with Brian is not his decision to make.”

“You do that. In the meantime, would you mind being the decent human being I know you are and politely introduce yourself to Siobhan?” Alex requested.

Lena removed her glove and shoot Siobhan’s hand firmly and briefly.

“Dr. Lena Luthor, forensic anthropologist. Welcome to the team, I suppose.”

“There, was that so hard?” Alex said.

Lena grunted as she pulled out her cell phone from the pocket of her field suit.

“I need to call Cat.”

Alex took a deep calming breath as she watched her walk away. Lena was her friend but sometimes she was a handful.

“I apologize for her rudeness. She can be civil, and even nice, when she gets used to you.”

“I can’t wait,” Siobhan said sarcastically.

“Alex is right,” James confirmed. “Once Dr. Luthor knows you, she’s like a different person.”

“Oh I love hearing you say that I’m right, James,” Alex teased.

“Just because you’re right about Dr. Luthor, doesn’t mean you’re right about the jurisdiction on this case,” James replied.

“What do we know about the route taken by the truck?”

“It left Maryland at 3:27 this morning…” James started.

“So it crossed states lines, so it’s our case,” Siobhan interrupted.

“But it was empty when it arrived and the truck driver heard the body dropped when the truck was loaded with the salt,” James continued. “So it’s my case.”

“My preliminary findings are concurring with this version of events so far,” Lena said as she came back toward them. “Looks like we’re working together, Detective.”

“It would appear that the case is all yours, Detective Olsen,” Siobhan conceded.

“But let us know if you’d like an assist,” Alex added. “Come on Siobhan, let’s go spar so you can show me what moves you have and then I’ll treat you to breakfast.”

A few days later, Alex made an effort to leave work early to work on her school assignments. She was about to enter the grocery store when her phone rang. She answered as she went through the doors.

“Danvers.”

“Hey, Alex, it’s me!” Kara said enthusiastically. “I’d like to host a poker night and…” the end of the sentence got lost when Alex was violently projected on the ground.

She slowly got up in the middle of the protests.

“Watch where you’re going!”

“Are you alright, miss?”

“I’m okay, nothing broken. My eggs though…”

“Alex? Alex!”

Kara’s voice brought Alex back to reality. She picked up her phone and brought it to her ear.

“I’m okay, call you back later.”

She hung up and looked at the mess she had done. A loaf of sliced bread had been flattened and a dozen eggs were lying in a pool of strawberry jam and glass shards. The owner of the items was already picking up empty shells with the help of an old man.

“I’m so sorry…”

“Well, I hope you’re proud of yourself! That’s all I had for the week and… Alex?”

“Sam! I’m so sorry, this time I was the one not paying attention.”

“Why don’t you leave your phone alone and concentrate on what you’re doing?” the old man grumbled.

“You’re right, sir. Sam, at least let me replace what you lost. It’s the least I can do.”

Sam picked up the flattened bread and placed it in the unbroken bag she was carrying.

“That’s very nice of you but I can’t wait. I’m already late to pick up Ruby at school and I can’t miss my transfer so I have about… two minutes” she said after looking at her watch. “I have to go!”

She ran to the entryway of the grocery store, leaving the old man and Alex who went after her.

“I have my car!” she yelled to make Sam stop. “I can drive you to Ruby’s school and then we’ll go get the food I ruined.”

Sam hesitated for a moment then turned around and looked at Alex’s sincere smile and nodded.

“I think we should go clean our mess before we leave,” Sam suggested.

“Excellent idea!”

The old man was grumbling after them as they came back and the store clerk wasn’t too happy to see it was them who had made a mess again. They helped with the clean up then left.

Forty-five minutes later, Alex was waiting in her car for Sam to come back with Ruby. She took the opportunity to send a text to her sister, telling her again she was okay and that she would call her later. The back door opened and she looked up to greet the teenager. She was surprised to see the young girl she had seen in her Friday night class the week before. The girl looked unsure.

“Uh… you’re Alex right? My mom said one of her friends was driving her and since it’s the only car around…”

Alex smiled at her and showed her her badge and credentials.

“That’s me. Alex Danvers, nice to meet you Ruby. Do you want to put your bag in the trunk?”

Ruby looked relieved as she looked at the badge and credentials. They seemed legit.

“Hello Agent Danvers. If you don’t mind, I’d rather keep my bag with me in the back.”

“No problem. You can call me Alex. Did your mom say how long she would take?”

Ruby seemed embarrassed.

“The principal asked to talk with her in private. We can take the bus if it’s too much trouble.”

“No! Not at all! I’m happy to help! I wanted to know because I was wondering if I should turn off the engine.”

Ruby relaxed.

“Oh. The engine should be turned off if you wait over a minute,” she recommended.

Alex turned off the engine and Ruby sat on the back seat without fastening her seatbelt.

“So, how long have you been attending university?”

“I’m not attending university I’m thirteen!” Ruby protested.

“Oh! Then it’s not you I saw in my class last Friday. You must have a twin somewhere.”

Ruby’s face lit up.

“I knew your face looked familiar! It was me on Friday. My mom didn’t find someone to look after me so she brought me along. I told her I can stay on my own but she wouldn’t let me, so we made a deal with the teacher and she lets me attend. In exchange, Mom and I are going to the soup kitchen on Saturdays and we help Ms Morz. Mom cooks and I play with the kids so their parents can have a break.”

Alex gave Ruby an impressed smile.

“Wow! And you’ll do that every Saturday of the term?”

Ruby nodded as Sam opened the passenger’s door and slid in. Her cheeks were pink and Alex didn’t know the cause.

“He asked you out!” Ruby yelled.

Sam’s cheeks turned red and Alex gave her a sly smile.

“Someone’s got the hots for the principal,” she teased just loud enough for Sam to hear over Ruby’s protestation.

“You knew he was going to ask me?” Sam questioned her daughter.

“He asked me if you had someone in your life and I told him the truth,” Ruby grumbled.

“And what’s the truth according to you?” Sam wondered as she fastened her seatbelt.

“The truth is you’re working all the time and you don’t have time to have a man in your life,” Ruby answered, fastening her own seatbelt.

Alex started the engine and followed the GPS to Sam’s place, letting the mother/daughter duo talk.

“You’re absolutely right and that’s why I turned him down.”

“Really?” Alex said before she could stop herself.

“That and the fact that he has a beard. I don’t like facial hair, yuck!” Sam said.

Ruby laughed and Alex smiled. She wasn’t a big fan either. She drove for a few minutes then stopped at a grocery store. Before Ruby could ask, Sam explained what had happened.

“So it happened twice? In the same week?”

Alex was stunned. She hadn’t realized that Sam and her had literally run into each other at the grocery store twice in the same week or so.

“And Alex is buying us eggs and jam but did you buy her a new shirt of gave her one of yours?” the teenager questioned.

“Alex refused but she gets free coffee when she comes to the diner.”

“Well, that explains a lot,” Ruby mumbled as she unfastened her seatbelt. Sam frowned.

“Like what?”

They exited the car and Alex locked the doors.

“Your mood has changed in the last week. Probably because you drink less coffee because you give Alex some of the coffee you normally drink. Mister Stanley wouldn’t let you give free coffee to anyone, he likes his money too much. So you drink less coffee which puts you in a pissy mood and…”

“Ruby, enough!” Sam snapped.

Her face was red again but this time with shame and anger. Ruby understood that she had been right but she had gone too far and that there would be consequences when they got home. Alex acted as if she hadn’t heard anything and walked toward the store. Inside, she took a cart and Sam followed her while Ruby walked on the other side, careful to leave Alex between her and her mother. Alex took what she needed for herself and didn’t say a word when Sam put a dozen eggs and the cheapest jar of jam she could find. She didn’t miss the envious look Ruby threw at the Nutella spread but the teenager stayed quiet.

“Sam? May I add some things for you? I feel bad for wasting your purchases earlier.”

Sam hesitated for a long moment, looking at Alex.

“If I say yes, will you let me veto what you buy if I don’t approve?” she asked.

“As you wish,” Alex promised.

Sam sighed.

“Alright. But nothing too expensive!”

Alex added a small jar of Nutella in the cart and went back in the alleys. With Ruby’s help she added several items but was careful to get them at the best price. Sam only vetoed the pack of cookies but Alex added everything they were missing for making some from scratch. At some point, Ruby tugged on Alex’s arm and whispered something in her ear. Alex whispered something back then the teenager nodded and went to the next alley.

“What are you two hiding?” Sam asked.

Alex gave her her biggest smile.

“We found a diplomatic solution to a sensitive matter.”

“Alex, I… No! Ruby, no! Go put that back where it came from.”

Ruby refused to listen and put the big bag of expensive coffee in the cart.

“Ruby Floriana Arias, go put that coffee back! Right now!”

Ruby defiantly crossed her arms on her chest.

“No. It’s my way to apologize for what I said earlier. I shouldn’t have said that.”

Sam hugged her daughter then lowered herself to be eye level with her.

“Ruby, I understand what you want to do and I appreciate it but Alex is the one paying for all this and I don’t want her to pay for this coffee, it’s too expensive. And there’s already coffee in the cart.”

Ruby hugged her mother back.

“I’m sorry, mom. I’m paying for the coffee.”

Alex cleared her throat.

“Actually, it’s still me who’s paying but I just hired Ruby to do some cleaning at my house for the next two Sundays, if I don’t have a case that needs my attention.”

Sam got back up and looked at Alex.

“You don’t have to do that, Alex. I don’t need that coffee.”

Alex smiled at her.

“I know. But I need help to clean my house. The floors need scrubbing, the bathrooms cleaned, the gym disinfected and if we need to, I have some paperwork that needs to be filed.”

Sam raised her eyebrows.

“Uh uh. I believe you. Whatever I say, you’ll buy the coffee?”

Alex and Ruby nodded in synch and smiled. Sam sighed.

“I sure hope it will taste good. And don’t even think about getting one drop of it, Alex. If everyone is done, it’s time to go because it’s getting late and Ruby has some homework to do.”

The three of them went to the checkout line and Sam almost fainted when she saw the final amount but she didn’t protest. The drive to Sam’s place was filled with laughter with Alex and Ruby singing along the radio.

Once had reached their destination, Alex and Sam brought the numerous bags inside the small apartment. Ruby had Sam’s tote bag and was opening the doors. She emptied the tote bag and put away the milk, peanut butter, squished bread and bag of pasta that Sam had purchased earlier then started to empty the other bags.

“Ruby, can you put it away while I accompany Alex to her car? Then you can either shower or start your homework, I’ll be back shortly to get dinner ready.”

“Yes, mom. Bye, Alex! See you Friday! And thanks for the Nutella!”

Sam followed Alex to her car.

“Why Friday?” she asked. “I thought you said Sunday.”

“In class? Oh right, you weren’t there when we talked about it. We’re on the same class on Friday night with Megan Morz. Which reminds me, do you want to partner with me for the mid-term paper? Unless you already have a partner?”

Sam let a hand through her hair.

“Wow! Uh… no… I mean yes! No, I don’t already have a partner, yes I want to partner with you. Alex… I don’t know how to thank you for all you did for us tonight. Just the fact that you drove us around is fantastic, but all that food you bought… I’ll pay you back for everything, I promise.”

Alex took Sam’s hand in hers and squeezed it gently.

“Sam, I really didn’t mind driving you around and meeting Ruby and helping you. I know you had a hard time stepping on your pride and accept my help several times tonight. I know you did it for Ruby.”

Sam nodded and dried the tear falling down her cheek.

“I also know it’s important to you not to be indebted to anyone and I know that you think you owe me but that’s not the case.”

Sam burst out in tears. Alex let go of her hand and hugged her, ignoring the looks of the curious neighbours who passed by. Sam cried for several minutes in Alex’s neck while Alex passed a calming hand on her back.

“It’s so hard, Alex,” Sam whispered after a while. “I work like a dog to be sure my daughter has everything she needs. I went back to school so I can get a better job and give her a decent future. I got so much student debts that my grandchildren will be in college by the time I’m done paying my loans and I still have to accept the help of a stranger to make sure my daughter goes to school on a full stomach while my oven decided to break this morning and the freezer doesn’t seem to do its job properly and will need to be changed within the next three months!”

Alex didn’t say anything about the fact that Sam considered her like a stranger, although it wasn’t completely untrue, and kept trying to reassure her. Sam ended the hug and dried her tears.

“And now I’m insulting you. You’re not a stranger, Alex, you’re a friend. I wouldn’t have accepted your help if I didn’t consider you as such. Thank you.”

“How about you come help me assemble the furniture I bought last week? I haven’t got the time to do it yet and it’s easier when there are two people. Unless you’d rather have a few hours by yourself on Sunday?”

“You’re serious about that? You really want my thirteen years old to come clean your house? I have to negotiate to get her to clean her room!”

Alex smiled at her.

“I’m very serious. She made a deal and she has to respect it. And I’d really like your help with the furniture but I understand if you prefer to go for coffee with a friend or just spend some time on your own.”

Sam shook her head.

“I’m the queen of IKEA furniture. Ruby and I will be at your house on Sunday morning. I just need your address and phone number.”

Alex crossed her arms on her chest.

“I’m coming to pick you up and there’s no need to argue about it,” she stated.

Sam mimicked her posture.

“Then I’m paying you back for gas and there’s no need to argue about this either,” she answered.

Alex considered the proposition for a moment.

“Deal.”

They exchanged their phone numbers and Alex went home.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for the kudos, subscriptions and comments! It really brightens my day when I receive such lovely comments! On to chapter 3! For those who would like to see what inspired this story at first, check out the videoclip of the song "Somebody" by Reba McEntire. It all starts from there.

As the weeks passed by, Alex got into a new routine during the weekends. After Friday night class, where Alex was now sitting near Sam and Ruby, she would drive the Ariases home to avoid the long public transportation ride and she would stay to have a cup of tea with Sam while Ruby went to bed. On Saturday nights, they would eat together then the adults would do their homework while Ruby played with her computer. Sunday afternoons were spent at Alex’s where Ruby cleaned the home gym while Sam taught Alex how to cook and bake.

Alex had cut back on overtime but found herself to be more efficient than ever, much to her boss’s satisfaction, and more relaxed and focused. Getting to know Sam and Ruby felt natural and Alex really appreciated them. Sam had become a true friend and Alex felt at ease to talk with her about things she wouldn’t usually discuss, even with her sister. As for Sam, she talked about her relationship with Ruby and the challenges she had faced as a single mother.

The night before their midterm exam, they decided to do a study night. Alex went to get Sam at the diner and they went to pick up Ruby from school. The teenager was more than happy to leave earlier than usual. While Ruby was doing her homework in her room, Sam and Alex settled themselves in the kitchen to get through the flashcards they had made. Alex asked Sam questions which she answered correctly and confidently but when they switched, Sam quickly understood that her friend’s mind was somewhere else.

“Got a new case?” she asked after the third incorrect answer.

Alex was staring in front of her, lost in her thoughts. Sam gently touched her arm, startling her. Sam removed her hand and gave Alex a reassuring smile.

“Got a new case? Your head’s not on studying.”

Alex bit her bottom lip, unsure of what to say. Sam tried a change in subject.

“Do you want to stay and have dinner with us? I made a lasagne yesterday with the sauce you made last Sunday.”

Alex nodded.

“I got offered a promotion and I have to give an answer by tomorrow,” she admitted.

“Wow! Congratulations!”

“Thanks. I’m not sure I’m going to accept it, I don’t feel ready to move across the country.”

Sam paused.

“What do you mean?”

“The job is in LA. They want me to work with a very good agent and it would be a step forward in my career if I want to move up the chain someday.”

“Oh.”

“But it would mean leaving my sister, my team, you guys, and I’m not sure that’s what I want.”

Sam put her hand on hers and gave her a little smile.

“What do you want then? Alex, if you haven’t decided yet, maybe you feel like there’s something wrong with their offer?”

Alex felt a shiver up her arm at Sam’s touch. She looked at her friend who was patiently waiting.

“I always thought I would continue my career at Quantico,” Alex explained. “I would like to teach to the new recruits, prepare them to become the best agents possible, form new partnerships like Lena and I, maybe even created a joint program between the two professions or a special unit.”

Sam smiled at Alex’s passion while she talked about her projects.

“I think you should talk with your boss about your ideas. It seems very dear to you and maybe he can help making them come true. Did you talked about this with Lena? And with your sister?” she added, knowing how close the Danvers sisters were.

Alex nodded.

“Lena said that if she can’t work with me anymore, she’ll focus on the historical skeletons and on her research projects with Dr Spheer. She would let Brian take charge of the investigations like I’d be doing with Siobhan. And Kara thinks that this promotion would be good for my career even if it would mean being transferred to the other side of the country.”

“I see. Hold on a sec.”

Sam got up and went to put the lasagne in the oven to warm up, then she took Alex’s hand and brought her to the living room where they sat facing each other on the couch, a habit that had formed in the last few weeks.

“I feel there is something you’re not telling me but I don’t want you to feel obligated to tell me if you don’t want to. From what I know about Lena, it feels like she reacted like she always does, she distances herself because she doesn’t like changes. I’m sure she would be sad not to work with you anymore and she would miss you. And your sister is right, this promotion would be good for your career but what matters is what you want. If you’re not happy with your job right now then maybe a change would do you good. But if you’re happy, you should keep doing what you like.”

Alex looked away from Sam to hide her tears. It was crazy how much Sam knew her so well after so little time and how much her words meant.

“I don’t know how much longer I can do this, Sam. I put my life on the line, everyday. And every day I run the risk of losing it. And I feel like I haven’t got the chance to really live it yet. I’m afraid that if I don’t make a move soon… If I don’t reach out and take a hold of my future… at what my heart wants… then I’m never gonna be happy…” Alex whispered, still not looking at Sam.

She let the tears fall down, unable to hold them any longer. Sam wrapped her arms around Alex’s shoulders and brought her head against her neck, gently caressing her back.

“What does your heart wants Alex?” she asked softly.

Alex closed her eyes for a moment, appreciating the warmth of Sam’s arms.

“I want a child,” she confessed. “I’ve always wanted to be a mom but time is running out and I don’t have anyone anymore. And I doubt the adoption agencies would like my situation with me being a field agent and a single parent.”

Sam heard Ruby getting out of her room to go to the bathroom and knew that their grown up moment was over.

“I want to talk about it with you, but Ruby is coming. I’ll distract her and you can sneak into the bathroom and put some cold water on your eyes. When Ruby’s gone to bed, I’ll break out the tea and chocolate and we’ll talk okay?”

Alex nodded and Sam got up to intercept her daughter. Alex followed Sam’s instructions and spent a few minutes in the bathroom to get herself back together. Dinner was pretty normal much to Alex’s relief.

A few hours later, Alex and Sam retook their places on the couch. They talked for over two hours during which Alex opened up like she had never done with anyone before. When she got home, she was exhausted but surprisingly she felt lighter. Lying in her cold bed, she thought about what Sam had said.

‘ _I maintain what I said earlier. What matter is that you are happy. If you take the job in LA as a way to get a desk job only to please the adoption agencies, you’ll end up resenting your child for it. Talk with your coworkers who have kids, they know better than me the risks involved by being a parent while you work in the field. If you have to, ask for professional help. Talk to the adoption agencies, or go to a fertility clinic if it’s an option you might consider. You’re not alone Alex. There are people around you who love you and want to help you. You can have everything your heart desires_.’

Sam’s words had touched a very sensible place in Alex’s heart and she had tried very hard not to burst in tears again. In the darkness of her bedroom, she stopped trying and cried for a long time. Through the tears, she remembered the reassuring feeling of Sam’s arms around her shoulders and her smile during dinner. Alex dried her tears as she remembered the shiver when Sam had touched her. Sam with her smile so big it brightened her eyes, Sam with her kindness, Sam with her strength and her courage, Sam with her undeniable faith in Alex while she didn’t have as much herself…

Sleep surprised her and she started dreaming of Sam. When she woke up wet with arousal hours later, she knew she was in trouble. She gave up the idea of sleep and went to take a cold shower despite her fatigue and then she ran full speed on her treadmill for a full hour. Out of breath, she put on her boxing gloves and started to hit the sandbag, determined to keep her budding feelings for her friend in check. She would _not_ fall for her straight friend.

She had no intention to put herself in a situation where she would fall for her friend only to be rejected. She wouldn’t let herself be swallowed by a wave of feelings that would leave her more hurt than she already was. She was starting to get better after the break up with Maggie, she wasn’t going to get sucked in again. She was going to take her distances, starting today by bringing her morning coffee from home. She would get lunch with Siobhan at the Puerto Rican restaurant that her partner liked and she would not bring Sam and Ruby home after the exam tonight. Each resolution was followed with a punch on the sandbag.

Sure of her new rules, Alex finished up the beating of the sandbag then went to take another shower before getting ready for work. She almost spat out her coffee on her way to the office. It didn’t taste the same as the one Sam made her at the diner. She didn’t waste time when she arrived and went to see AD Jones and explained to him her ideas for Quantico. She left an hour later with the promise that he would talk to his superiors but he was interested with the project.

The rest of the day went by quickly. Alex and Siobhan did a follow up interview with a person of interest then Alex went to work on her court testimony for the upcoming Monday. She bought dinner at a food truck and arrived almost late to her exam on purpose to be sure her usual seat was taken. She gave Ruby a polite smile when the teenager waved at her from across the room but she didn’t go see her and felt bad for acting like this. It was a small miracle that she managed to concentrate on her exam and to finish it at half of the time allowed. She didn’t look at Sam or Ruby as she went to give her exam to her teacher and left quickly.

Outside the classroom, Alex took a moment to take deep breaths and center herself and saw that it was pouring outside. She decided that taking her distances didn’t mean being a jerk and that she would be mean to let the Ariases wait for public transportation in the rain. She sat on a bench near the classroom’s door and exchanged a few texts with her sister while waiting for Sam and Ruby.

When Kara wrote that she had been cancelled on again last minute, Alex got pissed and called her.

“Tell me who it is and I’ll beat up some manners into them!” she yelled.

Kara sighed at the other end of the line.

“It’s okay, Alex. I’m working on personal stuff. It’s not a big deal.”

Alex lowered her voice.

“Kara, you deserved to be respected. Do you want me to come tonight?”

“Nah, I think I’ll go to bed early. You want to come tomorrow instead? I got new movies and weren’t you supposed to give your answer for your promotion today? What did you decide?”

“I’ll tell you tomorrow okay? I’ll make you eggs Benedict and waffles.”

Kara burst out laughing.

“And risk food poisoning? No thank you! You’ve mastered pancakes and that’s already a lot.”

“I’ve learned a lot recently!” Alex protested.

“Not enough for me to risk it. I’ll probably sleep late so use your key.”

“Is there a risk to catch you in flagrante delicto?” Alex teased.

“Good night, Alex!”

“Night, sis!” Alex said before she hung up.

A few minutes passed and Sam and Ruby got out of the classroom. Sam looked exhausted and let Ruby guide her. When she saw Alex, her face lit up with a smile that created a butterfly in Alex’s stomach.

“How did you finish so fast?” Sam asked in awe.

Ruby chuckled.

“You’d finish fast too if you didn’t read the exam three times.”

Alex could hide her smile.

“If the ladies are ready, I’ll go get the carriage.”

Sam looked outside and winced.

“Wait, I think I have an umbrella in my bag.”

“That won’t be necessary, I saw lightning earlier, it wouldn’t be safe. Don’t worry, I run fast,” Alex reassured her.

She winked at Ruby then sprinted to her car at the other side of the parking lot. Despite her speed, she got soaked. She went to get the Ariases and drove to their apartment building.

“Hot chocolate for everyone tonight!” Ruby said enthusiastically. “Mom said I can stay up late.”

Alex looked embarrassed.

“Oh… I… hum... I can’t stay tonight. I didn’t sleep well last night because of the exam so I’ll go home, get some rest.”

Sam nodded. She knew the exam was not the only thing that had kept Alex awake. Ruby didn’t give up.

“Tomorrow night then.”

Alex blushed.

“I’m spending some time with my sister tomorrow and we’ll likely go out for dinner.”

“Sunday?” Ruby asked with a small voice.

“I have to testify in court on Monday morning and I have to get ready. I’m sorry,” Alex lied, starting at the road to avoid Ruby’s begging eyes.

The teenager sat back and didn’t say a word. Silence grew heavier and Alex reached without looking for the radio at the same time Sam did. Their fingers touched for a second and Alex felt another shiver go through her body like the night before. She quickly removed her hand and let Sam choose the music.

When they arrived a few minutes later, Ruby got out of the car without a word and ran to the building. Sam waited for a moment before she opened her door.

“Thank you for driving us back, Alex. I really appreciate it. And I’m sorry for my teenager. Do you want to have dinner with us next Friday even if we don’t have class?”

Alex hesitated.

“Maybe if my work schedule allows it. By the way, I followed your advice and I talked to my boss about my idea of a joint program and he liked it. So thank you.”

When Sam smiled, it wasn’t a butterfly that was created in Alex’s stomach but a whole colony.

“I’m so glad to know that you’ll follow your dreams. I’m proud of you.”

The butterflies multiplied exponentially and Alex felt warmth all over her.

“Good night, Alex!” Sam said before she got out and ran to her daughter.

Alex waited until they were both inside before she went home. She fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow, a huge smile on her lips. The next day, she wasn’t able to make Kara talk about who was neglecting her but they still had a nice sister day. Kara had loved the idea of her teaching at the academy. She did work on her testimony on Sunday then spent the rest of the day recategorizing the books in the new bookshelves she had Sam had put together a few weeks before.

The following week was fairly normal except Alex made a conscious effort to wait longer before she answered Sam’s texts instead of answering right away like she had done in the last few weeks. She resisted the reflex to check her phone every time Sam’s ringtone played. She didn’t go to the diner to get her morning coffee or lunch like she had done almost daily for the last five years. She didn’t go to Sam’s house for dinner on Friday night, saying that work was crazy. She was angry with herself but she knew the best way to control her feelings and keep them in check was to reduce her contact with Sam to a minimum. Alex had no reason to believe that Sam was interested in women and even less so in her. There was no way she was going to admit how she felt and embarrass Sam and be rejected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think a lot of us can relate to Alex in this chapter. A little angst before chapter four which is... pretty big I'd say! This story is 70k words... I never wrote something so big in my life. So hang on to your hats because next week, the drama starts!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised the drama starts! But at least it's a long chapter. I tried my hand at writing a mystery fic and let me tell you, it's not easy. I hope you'll find it entertaining nonetheless. Since it's a Bones inspired AU, there is forensic details but noting graphic. Hope you'll enjoy it! :)

Alex managed to hold on to her resolution for six weeks. She barely went to the diner anymore and when she did, she stayed long enough to get her food to go and only small talked with Sam. On Friday nights, Alex would assist to the class and be civil with Ruby but claimed she had to get back to work after class since she was on a new case that demanded a lot of attention, so she didn’t brought Sam and Ruby home and didn’t spend time with them during the weekend. While it wasn’t a lie since she really had to apprehend a serial killer who buried their victims alive and ask for ransom, Alex still felt like a jerk.

She had tried to get her feelings to go away so she could at least be around Sam as a friend but just like her feelings for Maggie, she couldn’t wish them away. In fact, it was worse than Maggie because she didn’t see Maggie on a semi-regular basis and all her feelings didn’t flare up in her stomach each time like they did with Sam. She went on a date with a friend of Siobhan’s and even if the woman was interesting, interested and beautiful, Alex’s head wasn’t in the game and it didn’t go past the first dinner.

She spent time with Kara who still wouldn’t tell her who was standing her up repeatedly. Even if Alex knew that a few dates had happened, she still threatened bodily harm if she ever found out who it was. She mostly didn’t understand why Kara would date a person who was so disrespectful of her.

“Is that person married?” Alex asked one evening after she saw Kara being cancelled on again. “Is that why they change their mind last minute? They don’t want to be caught cheating?”

Kara took a moment to regain her composure.

“No that person is not married, they just have a very demanding and very important job so things happens last minute,” she explained more calmly than she felt.

“Why won’t you tell me who it is?”

“Because it’s complicated, okay? Please respect my boundaries and leave me alone with that!”

Alex respected her sister’s wish but she was very close to start an investigation and ask the others to help.

She visited James and Lucy and finally met baby Marcus and she managed to hold it together for an afternoon but she had came back home a wreck and had eaten a full tube of rocky road ice cream then ran 15 miles out of guilt. The Olsens represented everything Alex craved and one afternoon had been too much envy and longing to have the same. It was around mile 12 that Sam’s words came back to haunt her. _Talk to the adoption agencies, or go to a fertility clinic if it’s an option you might consider._ Maybe it was time to get her head in the game and go forward with having a child on her own. Except that she wanted more. She wanted a child with Sam. Furious with herself, she ran five more miles

Friday arrived with a new investigation. Alex drove with Lena in a wooded area in Bethesda where the victim had been found early in the morning by a jogger with his dog. They joined Siobhan and Brian who had drove with Winn in the forensic truck.

While Lena was putting on her crime scene suit and talked with Brian and Winn, Alex consulted her other partner.

“What do we have to perfectly end this week?”

“Victim was found around 6 this morning. The animals have already done a pretty good job of taking the flesh and organs and since the body was exposed to the elements, it’s not a pretty picture. Brian estimated it’s a woman aged between 40 and 50 years old. According to him, the victim was killed about a week ago but he wanted Winn’s opinion before going on the record with that. We found traces of a vehicle and boot prints. Winn will make moulds to identify the make and model of the vehicle and I think we got something with the boots. We’re lucky to have them at all considering the time passed.”

Siobhan led Alex to the victim’s body and one thing was very clear in Alex’s mind. Rage. The woman’s skull had been broken in a thousand pieces with a rock lying next to the body. Lena was already taking it with her gloved hands to bag it.

“Do you think we’ll get the killer’s DNA on the rock?” Alex asked.

“If the killer wasn’t wearing gloves, it’s a possibility,” Lena answered. “Finding the victim’s identity won’t be easy. Decomp is too advanced to get fingerprints and the teeth are in the same shape as the skull.”

“But you’ll be able to reconstruct the skull?” Alex asked.

“If we find enough pieces, yes. Otherwise, you’ll have to use your amazing detective/genius skills to find who she was.”

Alex opened her mouth to answer her when her phone rang and panic set in her stomach when she saw Sam’s name flash on the screen.

“Sam? Is everything okay? Is Ruby alright?”

“Hey Alex! Everything’s fine. I just got off the phone with Ms Morz and she’s got a stomach bug and she won’t be able to teach the class tonight so we’re free for the evening. And I was wondering if you’d like to come for dinner with Ruby and me?”

Alex was taken aback. Apparently Sam didn’t mind that Alex was distancing herself from her. Unsure if she was ready or strong enough to spend several hours with her, Alex walked back toward her car so the others wouldn’t hear.

“I don’t know, I’m at a crime scene right now and I don’t know what time I’ll get off.”

“Wow! I thought you would have a break since you caught the Gravedigger just last week.”

“Crime never sleeps. I have to go. I’ll let you know if I can make it.”

“Okay! Have a good day!”

“You too. Bye.”

A few hours later, Alex went to the Institute. She was surprised to find Lena in the decomp room, placing some remains in a big Plexiglas box.

“Is that our Jane Doe? That was fast.”

“Cat is done with the autopsy and Winn got everything he needed,” Lena said without looking at her.

“Did you lose a bet against Brian? Usually he’s the one who does that part,” Alex said.

Lena made sure that everything was sealed then went to get two jars on a shelf.

“Brian has a romantic dinner tonight and he wanted time to prepare. I offered him to take care of the bugs if he took care of finding all the skull fragments. It’s a good exercise for him,” Lena explained as she opened the jars and emptied them on the remains. Alex looked for a moment as the thousands of dermestidae beetles got to work. The little critters would only take a few hours to clean the bones of the flesh.

“Oh! Speaking of romantic dinners, do you know who’s the idiot who has been standing up my sister for the last few weeks? I’d like to give them a little shovel talk.”

Lena blushed and concentrated on the beetles, which Alex noticed.

“What do you know, Lena?”

Lena sighed.

“Maybe your sister wants to avoid the shovel talk? Maybe she’s scared of your reaction? Maybe she’s not ready to come out with her relationship or maybe the other person wants to keep it private? Maybe she’s a grownup who knows what she’s doing and you should respect that?”

Alex analysed everything Lena had said and not said. Then she remembered that Kara had mentioned that she had a dinner planned tonight to compensate the one cancelled the week before. The connection was almost instantaneous.

“It’s Brian!” she yelled.

Lena went straight as an arrow and hurried to close the door.

“Shhh!!! Do you want everyone to hear you?” she hissed. “Leave Brian alone. I need him and all his limbs intact. He’s an important member of my team and I won’t let you harm him. Leave your sister alone with her love life. She’ll talk to you when she wants to. If you’ll excuse me, I have a 3D puzzle waiting for me.”

Lena left quickly and Alex understood too late that maybe her friend had unrequited feelings for her assistant. It would explain why she had been so rattled when Siobhan had joined their team. But with Brian being her student, they couldn’t date and clearly Brian wasn’t interested if he was on a date with someone else. Facing a possible complicated situation, Alex elected to walk away for now and go to Winn’s lab while she promised herself to have a conversation with Lena soon and to make Brian understand that Kara deserved to be respected.

Winn was looking at something through his microscope when Alex came in.

“Doctor L is in the decomp room, Doctor Grant has gone to get her son, Brian has already left for the weekend, Nia is probably at school or at the library and I don’t know where your sister is. I don’t have any results for you, it’s too early. Go annoy someone else,” he said without looking up.

“I came to see the king of the lab. Do you think he will grant me an audience?” Alex asked with deference. “I’m thinking about letting Siobhan taking the lead on this investigation but I want to know what we got so far before I take my decision. Can you help me your Majesty?”

Winn let out a loud sigh but looked away from his microscope.

“You know I hate it when you do that?”

Alex gave him her biggest smile.

“Alright. Dr Grant did the autopsy on Jane Doe’s remains. She found a few hairs that were not the victim’s and we’re lucky because they still have their epithelium cells so we should have the killer’s DNA. The rock didn’t give anything. Cat also found fibers which I’m analysing right now and let’s not forget the mouldings of the boot prints and the tire tracks. And I still have some bugs and slime to analyse. So as you can see, I’ll be busy for the next two days so go annoy someone else. And don’t forget it’s your turn to babysit Doctor L while she pulls an allnighter!”

Alex grumbled. She hadn’t forgotten. Lena had a tendency to work all night and forget decent human functions so they each took turn to stay with her and supply her with coffee and remind her to sleep at some point. Alex had managed to wiggle herself out of this duty quite a few times and the others didn’t appreciate it. Winn went back to his microscope and Alex’s phone rang.

“Danvers!”

“Hey Alex!” Ruby’s excited voice made Alex smile for a second. “Mom and I are having homemade pizza night. Do you want to come eat with us?” We’re even watching Wonder Woman!”

Alex wanted to punch herself. She had forgotten Sam’s invitation for tonight.

“Hey Ruby! I’m sorry, I got a new case and I don’t know when I’ll have some free time. Raincheck, okay?”

Alex heard the teenager sigh.

“Alright. Be careful.”

Alex was distracted by Siobhan passing in the hallway but she clearly heard _‘See! I told you she’s avoiding us!’_ before the line went dead. She felt as if Ruby had kicked her in the gut and it took her a moment to get herself in check. She was at work, it wasn’t the time or place to lose control.

A few minutes later, she went looking for her protégée and found her in the decomp room, looking at the dermestidae.

“I find them fascinating”, Siobhan said when she saw Alex.

“They’re doing remarkable work,” Alex agreed. “Listen, I want you to take the lead on this one. I’ll supervise but you’ll be in charge.”

Siobhan looked almost surprised.

“You’re not only saying that to get out of pulling an allnighter watching doctor Luthor, right? You really trust me?”

Alex rolled her eyes.

“Yes, I know it’s my turn to be on Lena watch. I will talk with her to see if she wants to leave Brian in charge too. It’s time you both get out of your comfort zone. Doctor Grant has done the autopsy and her report will probably be available on Monday and Kara will be able to give this poor woman a face once Lena has reconstructed the skull while you’re all sleeping and I’m trying to stay awake.”

She told Siobhan what Winn had said then wished her a good night and a good weekend before she went to join Lena in her office. Lena accepted to let her assistant be in charge of the investigation but she refused to let him reconstruct the skull. Alex forced her to come with her to the cafeteria to get some food before she started her tedious task. While they ate, she didn’t bring up Kara and Brian’s relationship like she wanted to do but she explained her project of having a joint program at Quantico for the FBI and forensic anthropology students. Lena listened to her with interest and made a few suggestions.

After they were done, Lena settled herself in her lab while Alex settled in her office since it was closer to the lab than Kara’s office. She had reports to read and write and a request form Agents Santiago and Diaz in the New York City office who wanted her input on a hired killer who had recently made a victim in the Big Apple. The killer had struck the victim with a hairpin into his eyes and it was similar to a crime that Alex had investigated three years ago.

Two hours later, her coffee mug was empty and her bladder was full so she figured the same was probably happening to Lena. Alex went to her partner’s lab and found her meticulously applying glue on what was starting to look like a mandible. She almost had to forcefully remove Lena from her lab for a bathroom break then she went to make them fresh coffee and went back to her files. The process was repeated a few times during the evening and the night until morning when Lena left the almost complete skull on Kara’s desk with the tissue markers and then went to wake up Alex who had fallen asleep at her computer. The agent picked up her paperwork then drove Lena home with orders to get some sleep and she intended to do the same.

Despite the fact that the last coffee she had made had been decaf, now that her mind wasn’t busy with work Alex couldn’t fall asleep. Ruby’s words had come back and once again it hurt. She should have done this whole taking her distances slowly in order to not hurt the teenager. On the other hand, getting away as fast as possible before feelings got deeper would end up in less hurt for everyone. Unable to sleep, Alex decided to go for a run outside to calm her mind. She spent the rest of the weekend sleeping, exercising and working to keep her thoughts as far away as possible from Sam and Ruby.

On Monday morning, she felt like a zombie when she accompanied Siobhan to see Dr Grant. Maybe she should take a vacation? A ski trip or maybe go to the beach? Maybe after this case. Alex forced herself to concentrate on what the M.E. was saying.

“Since decomposition was advanced on Jane Doe’s body, I didn’t have much to work with. For now, I can say for sure that the victim doesn’t seem to have been strangled, smothered or drowned. She wasn’t stabbed or shot. For now, I estimate that the cause of death is the multiple blunt force trauma to the head but I prefer to wait until the tox results and Dr. Luthor’s report before I sign off on that. There was what appears to be irritation in the throat. I took a sample and sent it to Winn for analysis. The results for the DNA test on the hair I’ve found that don’t belong to the victim and the tox screen should be here in a few days.”

“Thank you Dr. Grant,” Siobhan said.

Their second stop was Winn’s lab.

“I don’t have the results for the throat sample yet but I was able to identify the car. Our killer was driving a second generation Porsche Cayenne. The fibers that Dr Grant found correspond to the carpet in the trunk for those models. I also found some carpet fibers that were not from the car which makes me think that she wasn’t killed where we found her. The killer was wearing size 8 working boots so he’s probably not very tall. The right boot was more worn and had a crack in the sole. ”

Siobhan gave him her best smile.

“Tell me, Winn, did you get out of your lab since Friday? You know, to get some fresh air, eat, sleep, that kind of thing?”

She didn’t say _take a shower_ but Alex knew she wanted to. There were a lot of smells coming from the lab and they weren’t all from the chemicals used. Winn blushed.

“Alex told me that you were in charge of the investigation. I wanted to make it easier for you,” he confessed.

“And I really appreciate it. But you’re allowed to go home and rest. I wouldn’t want your brilliant brain or your work to suffer because of me,” Siobhan flirted.

Alex tried her best to stay neutral.

“It’s true that I haven’t slept much,” Winn conceded. “And I shouldn’t put my beautiful mind at risk, you’re right. Please excuse me ladies, I have to go home!”

He exited the room, leaving the two agents alone and Alex burst out laughing.

“What was that?” she asked, drying her tears.

“That was _how to convince a guy to go take a shower without bruising his ego_. Very effective. Downside is we don’t know if he has any other results for us though. Bummer. Come on, we still have your sister to see before your other partner.”

They caught Kara daydreaming in front of her computer. Alex slowly walked to her sister then bent down and blew in her ear. Kara jumped off her chair and brought down with her her drawing tablet and a bunch of coloring pencils much to Alex and Siobhan’s amusement.

“Did you have a nice weekend, Kara?” Alex asked as she avoided being hit by her sister,

“It’s none of your business! And what are you doing here?” Kara yelled.

Siobhan put herself between the sisters.

“We came to see if you had been able to get the face of our latest Jane Doe?” she asked.

“Of course I was!” Kara protested. “Once the skull is put back together, it’s not hard to feed the data to the computer and to draw the face!”

“I’m sure you’re right. May I see what the victim looked like?” Siobhan asked.

Kara calmed down and picked up her tablet while frowning at her sister who was picking up the pencils. She sat back to her computer and quickly closed a few tabs, including one for hotel reservation in the Seychelles Islands, and then brought up the drawing she had made. Siobhan looked closer at the brunette forty something with golden brown eyes.

“I feel like I’ve seen her before but I can’t place her. What do you think?” she asked the Danvers sisters.

“Glad to see I’m not the only one with that impression,” Kara said. “I was just about to try my facial recognition software when you arrived.”

Alex couldn’t resist.

“So you think our killer ran away to a tropical island?”

This time it was Siobhan who frowned at her. Alex raised her hands apologetically.

“Okay! Okay! I get it! Sorry!”

Alex went to the couch and grabbed a box of cookies from the coffee table. To hell with her rule not to eat sugar in the middle of the day. She was on her third cookie when Kara yelled “Bingpot! Mercy Graves! Oh no!”

Alex choked on her cookie.

“Mercy… Graves? Are you… sure?” she coughed.

Kara nodded slowly.

“Who is Mercy Graves?” Siobhan asked.

“Mercy Graves is a socialite who inherited Graves Pharmaceutical at 19 and she quickly sold it to a German company. She was engaged to Lex Luthor for two years. She was by his side during his trial and she went to visit him several times in prison until they broke up after she found out he was responsible for her brother’s death,” Alex explained as she got up. “I need to talk to Lena.”

Kara stopped her.

“No. Let me tell her.”

“Kara’s she’s my partner and my friend.”

“Alex, Lena is my best friend. Let me tell her,” Kara insisted.

“Fine,” Alex sighed. “But I’m coming with you.”

The three women went to look for Lena who they found in the main exam room, examining the victim’s bones with Brian.

“What’s going on?” Lena asked when she saw the trio rushing in.

“We have found the identity of Jane Doe,” Kara stated. “Maybe you should sit down before I tell you? Alex, she should sit down, can you get a chair for her? We should go to her office, she would be more comfortable in her office don’t you think?” she rambled.

“Kara!” Lena yelled. “Tell me who it is,” she added more softly.

“Mercy. It’s Mercy Graves, Lena, I’m so sorry,” Kara said.

Lena stayed stoic for a moment then she removed her gloves and lab coat slowly.

“Brian, you’re officially in charge of this investigation. You have to verify everything I have done since the beginning and don’t let anyone tell you what to do. If you have questions, go see Cat or call Dr. Brennan.”

Lena left, followed closely by the Danvers sisters. Brian looked like a fish out of the water and Siobhan tried to comfort him.

“Don’t worry. If you can replace her during her vacation, you can replace her any time. You’re ready.”

Brian had become very pale.

“She hasn’t taken any vacation in three years!” he bemoaned.

Once she had managed to calm down Brian, Siobhan found Alex in Lena’s office. Lena was snuggled up against Kara who had an arm wrapped around her shoulders. Alex was sitting on the coffee table and she had a reassuring hand on the anthropologist’s knee. Siobhan elected to stay back in the doorway.

“... can’t believe it, she was like a big sister for me. She taught me how to act and dress, how to silence a crowd with one look, how to break the fingers of a man who wouldn’t remove his hand from my knee… There is no doubt it’s her?”

Kara hugged her closer.

“The computer gave a probability of 95%.”

Lena burst in tears much to Siobhan’s surprise. She had always found her cold and distant. She decided to let Alex and Kara take care of Lena and to go back to work with Brian. But before that, she needed coffee and not a fancy one from the Institute’s cafeteria. She wanted normal, simple coffee. She went to the diner halfway between the Institute and the FBI headquarters where Alex and she had been having lunch almost every day until recently. She ordered a tall coffee for her and a black tea with maple syrup for Brian. The waitress smiled when she heard the order.

“You’re working with Brian today, agent Smythe? He’s the only person I know who drinks tea with maple syrup.”

Siobhan laughed.

“Nothing can get past you, Samantha. Brian just got his first investigation as the lead forensic anthropologist and I get to be the lead investigator so I thought we could both use a boost.”

Sam nodded and prepared the drinks.

“He must be very nervous right now. Thankfully, I have just the thing to help him relax.”

She went to the back then came back with three grey boxes.

“Here you go! A slice of sugar pie for Brian, a strudel for you and a slice of rhubarb pie for Alex. You can tell Kara and Dr. Luthor that I’ll have chocolate pecan pie tomorrow. Winn already came for his daily donut this morning.”

Siobhan was surprised by the gesture but she was even more surprised when Sam refused to charge her for anything else but the drinks. She understood quickly that it was pointless to argue against Sam and left a more than generous tip, like she had seen Alex do, before she left. She found Brian in the same room she had left him with the exception that Alex was there. Brian looked even more afraid then when she had left and he did his best to keep at a safe distance from Alex.

Siobhan gave Brian his tea and pie then gave Alex her box.

“Oh! You didn’t have to get me anything but thank you!”

“It’s a freebie from Sam at the diner. She seems to have memorized all our favorites. It’s nice.”

Alex wanted to squish the butterfly that appeared in her stomach. She took a bite of pie instead. Her rule was already broken and maybe the pie would crush those damn butterflies. Brian devoured his snack as he told Siobhan about what he had found.

“The blunt force trauma to the head is not the cause of death. There are no signs of bleeding inside the skull which means the victim was already dead when the killer hit her. She has no defensive wounds on her hands or arms which make me believe that she knew her attacker and she was probably poisoned because Dr Grant said there was something noticeable in the victim’s throat. We’re still waiting for the results on that. Since statistically women tend to use this killing method more, it would be logic to conclude that the killer is a woman.”

Siobhan exchanged a look with Alex then considered the possibility.

“It would fit with the boot prints. The killer could be a medium size woman instead of a not very tall man.”

Alex loudly cleared her throat to remind Siobhan to focus on the facts.

“But it’s too early to eliminate possibilities yet. Keep working and check with Winn to see if your theory is plausible,” Siobhan told Brian.

“While you do what?” Brian questioned.

“While I do my job and investigate to find who would want Mercy Graves dead.”

Despite all their efforts, Alex and Siobhan didn’t learn much that day. Mercy Graves had been living in New York and had no living relatives and no life partner or romantic entanglement at the moment. She didn’t have real friends from what they could gather from the tabloids and articles they read online. They printed Mercy’s picture from her DMV file then went to all the major hotels in the city, hoping to find a lead.

They finally found that she had been staying at the Willard Hotel but without a warrant the manager wouldn’t release their security footage or give them access to Mercy’s room where her things still were since the room had been paid in advance for two weeks.

“Ok, you go get us that warrant while I go check the prison’s visitor’s log. Maybe she came to see Lex?” Siobhan told Alex.

“Just keep it on the down-low. As soon as the news that Mercy Graves is dead hits, we’ll get the press on our backs and it won’t be pretty.”

“Come on, Danvers, it can’t be that bad.”

“Trust me, it can. I’ll call you when I get the recordings.”

On her way to get the warrant, Alex tried her best to keep her mind focused on the investigation and not Sam. The warrant took some time and the manager at the Willard told her he would have the hotel’s lawyers verify it before he would personally bring her the security footage the next day with a key card to Mercy’s room.

“Nobody knows what she was doing in DC,” Siobhan said as she and Alex took a table at the diner.

Alex had agreed to go, knowing that Sam had already left and that there were low chances that she would be seeing her.

“We don’t know why she came here or who she came to visit,” Siobhan continued. “That woman is a ghost here. Which is surprising since she’s famous for doing nothing so someone must have seen her and recognized her. She didn’t go visit Lex so why was she here?”

Alex removed her jacket and placed it on the back of her chair before she sat down.

“Don’t forget that… Sam? What are you still doing here?”

“Oh! Joan is sick so I’m closing tonight. I think she might have caught the same bug Ms Morz had on Friday. Ruby is with our new upstairs neighbour. They get along well and Ruby will able to sleep in her own bed.”

“Oh. Do you want me to bring you home after your shift is over?” Alex asked before she could stop herself. “To thank you for the afternoon snacks you sent. It was perfect timing.”

Sam bit her bottom lip. Alex found it endearing and wanted to be the one biting that lip.

“Are you sure? I don’t want to ruin your evening, you probably have better things to do with your evening than play taxi.”

Alex gave her a reassuring smile.

“On the contrary, it will stop me from working all night. I’ll set up here with my laptop and a cup of coffee and I’ll drive you home when you’re done, okay?”

“Okay. Do you want a double bacon cheeseburger with extra fries and a diet coke?”

“Yes, it’s perfect, thank you.”

Sam left for the kitchen, forgetting to take Siobhan’s order. Alex looked longingly at her as she left. She felt incredibly stupid for offering to bring Sam home but she couldn’t let her take public transportation this late, it would take forever. Siobhan picked up her bag and go up.

“Danvers? Danvers! Alex! I just had an idea but I need to talk to Winn. I’ll see you tomorrow okay?”

Seeing that Alex was lost into looking out for Sam, Siobhan rolled her eyes and left. Alex ate her burger and watched Sam work. She loved to see her smile at customers and be attentive to their needs. When Sam asked her if she wanted some dessert, Alex knew she should refuse but the pride in Sam’s eyes when she told her that she had been able to make a lemon meringue pie earlier in the afternoon made Alex weak and accept a slice. Before she could even realize what she was doing, she took a bite a moaned loud enough for Sam to hear.

“That good?” Sam teased.

“Hum? Oh! Yes! You really are talented with your hands Sam… I mean… It’s delicious!” Alex rambled.

“I’m glad you like it. Would you like your coffee now or later?”

“Later! Definitely later. After that pie I’m going to be so full you’ll have to roll me to the car,” Alex joked.

“Alright then, I’ll let you work. Let me know if you need anything.”

Alex nodded then finished her pie and installed her laptop. Now was a good time to catch up on her paperwork. While it was different from the time they spent together, Alex was glad that she was spending it with Sam even if she knew she shouldn’t.

Once all the customers were gone, Alex picked up her things and helped Sam put up the chairs on the tables so Sam could mop the floor.

“I can wipe the counters if you show me where the rags are,” Alex offered while Sam was filling a bucket with soapy water.

“You don’t have to do that, I’m okay. And you kinda have to wait outside because you don’t have the appropriate shoes and you could slip and fall and I don’t want you to get hurt. I wouldn’t want to be responsible for depriving the FBI of one of their best agents. If you still want to give me a lift, I should be done in half an hour.”

“You think I’m going to bail on you now? Nope, you’re stuck with me. I’ll go wait in my car ok? There’s no rush, take all the time you need.”

It was Sam’s turn to let out a moan when she sat in Alex’s car. Alex felt the full effect on her body and clenched her jaw to keep her reaction under control.

“Sorry, my feet are killing me. Thank you so much for doing this.”

“No problem. So… new neighbour hum? She has kids too?” Alex asked nonchalantly.

“I know she has at least a grown up niece who came to visit this week. That’s how we met. Sharon brought groceries for her aunt and she almost dropped a bag but I saved it just in time.”

“That was lucky!” Alex said with a fake cheerfulness.

“Right? And we started talking and then Mr. Stanley called and said that I had to work double shift today and I explained that I couldn’t because I have Ruby and then Peggy came to the rescue and told me she would watch over Ruby. So we spent our Sunday afternoon with them and they’re really nice. Sharon works as a nurse and Peggy used to work for the government back in the day. She had such fascinating stories and Ruby was smitten. And Sharon knows a lot about computers and you know how Ruby loves those so they talked about coding and all the stuff that I don’t understand. Peggy invited us for dinner and she made a great meatloaf and Sharon decided to stay until tomorrow so she can help her aunt take care of Ruby tonight. Isn’t it nice?”

Alex had been gripping the steering wheel tighter and tighter as Sam told her about her neighbour and her niece. She knew she had no right to be jealous but she couldn’t help the sentiment and Sam could really use more friends.

“Yeah, very nice. Will you tell Ruby that I’m very sorry about Friday night? This new case is going to need my attention a bit more.”

“Don’t worry about it, she understands. How do you feel about leaving Siobhan in charge?”

“I’m okay with it. I think she’s ready and I won’t be far to help her.”

Sam nodded. After a few minutes of silence, Alex turned on the radio. Without realizing it, she started to sing along.

_It's four in the morning, the end of December_

_I'm writing you now just to see if you're better_

She sang the whole song, staying in harmony with Cohen, forgetting she wasn’t alone. Sam stayed quiet, enjoying the impromptu concert. The duet finished just as Alex arrived to Sam’s building. Sam unbuckled her seatbelt and avoided to look at Alex.

“Thanks for the ride… And the song. You have a really nice voice. See you soon!” she blurted before she exited the car in a rush and speed walked inside the building.

Alex’s cheeks hurt with the rush of blood. How could have she forgotten that Sam was with her? She _never_ sang in front of people, not even when Kara used to drag her in karaoke bars. She took a moment to calm down, at least it hadn’t been a love song, that would have been worse. On her way to her house, the radio brought her back to reality.

_'Cause I can't make you love me if you don't_

_You can't make your heart feel something it won't_

She almost had to stop on the side of the road until her vision cleared of the tears but she turned off the radio and kept on going.

The next day, Alex was feeling very grumpy and she pointlessly tried to convince herself that she wasn’t in a bad mood because of Sam’s new upstairs neighbour’s niece. The hotel manager came to her office to give her the surveillance tapes and a key card for Mercy’s room. She called Siobhan and they went to the Willard with Winn and the CSU team.

Winn got on his hands and knees to look at the carpet.

“At first look, I would say that this is where the other fibers I found come from but I will need confirmation in the lab,” he told Siobhan. “This might be the place where she was killed.”

“No sign of forced entry or struggle, I think Brian was right and she knew who killed her,” Siobhan said. “I got things covered here, Danvers. Would you mind going through the security footage? I’ll call you if anything big pops.”

“Okay. Do you want me to ask questions at the bar in case Mercy met with someone or do you want to do it yourself?”

Siobhan considered the question for a moment.

“I’ll do it after I’m done here. It’ll be closer to the night shift and maybe I’ll run into the bartender who was on duty that night.”

“Okay. I’ll let you know if I find anything of interest.”

Back in her office, Alex went through the two weeks of footage the manager had brought instead of the one week she had requested. She couldn’t fault the man for being thorough, but she had thousands of hours to review and several cameras. She elected to start with the footage from the day before Mercy’s arrival. She finally caught Mercy’s check in with the luggage she had seen in the room. She was able to follow her steps up to the elevator then the track ran cold. She found Mercy later at the restaurant where she ate alone. Alex was able to follow her until she retired for the night.

Alex could feel a headache starting and her eyes burning. She looked up from her monitor, blinked a few times and looked at the time. It was way past dinner time and she had already skipped lunch. She checked on her phone where her favorite food truck was and went to get something to eat. She chugged a bottle of water and called Siobhan to see if she had any updates but her partner didn’t answer. She was on the third day of Mercy’s visit, the day she was killed, when Siobhan texted her that she was working from home and that the hotel room and the bar hadn’t give more clues to Mercy’s whereabouts.

Alex promised herself that she would finish the day of surveillance she was on then go home. Mercy was about to get dinner at the hotel’s restaurant again but this time she sat in a secluded space and Alex couldn’t see much of the table. She tried to find another angle but there wasn’t any. She noticed that Mercy was eating with someone but she couldn’t figure out who. All she could see was a hand and a sleeve that had a rose pattern, something familiar on it but she couldn’t remember where she had seen it before.

She went back and forth trying to see who the mysterious companion was but had no success. Her eyes and her head were killing her and she decided to call it a night.

After a very short night, she went to the Institute to talk with Lena about Mercy Graves. Something was bothering her. She was pretty sure she remembered where she had seen the rose pattern sleeve before. Lena was examining very old bones when Alex got into her lab.

“Were you in contact with Mercy Graves before she died?” she asked, cutting to the chase.

Lena put down the femur she had been measuring.

“Good morning to you too, Alex. Did you sleep well?” she said defiantly.

“Don’t play that game with me. Answer my question,” Alex ordered

Lena crossed her arms on her chest.

“Who’s asking? My friend Alex or FBI Special Agent Danvers?”

Alex sighed.

“Lena, I’m not accusing you of anything, I just want to know if you saw her.”

“Why?”

“Because I think you had dinner with her the night she died and you don’t want to tell me. And it would explain your reaction when we told you who it was. You knew we would suspect you, that’s why you left the investigation to Brian and told him to review everything you did, so it wouldn’t compromise the case in court if you were accused.”

“I thought you weren’t accusing me of anything?” Lena questioned.

“I’m not! I just want to know if you had dinner with Mercy Graves two weeks ago!” Alex protested.

Lena took the femur back and ignored her partner. Frustrated, Alex decided to go see Brian to check on his progress. On her way to his lab, she ran into Siobhan who walked purposefully, followed by two officers in uniform. Alex frowned.

“What’s going on Siobhan?”

“Come with me.”

Alex followed them to Lena’s lab.

“Doctor Lena Luthor, you’re under arrest for the murder of Mercy Graves!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Songs referred in this chapter are: Famous Blue Raincoat by Leonard Cohen and I Can't Make You Love Me by Bonnie Raitt.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I'm so glad that you liked the little cameo I left in last chapter. Have you found the three cameos in chapter four? OK I have to admit one is a bit vague but (I think) the reference is nice if you've seen the original material and I promise I didn't reference something too old or that's only shown in my part of the world. There is a cameo in this chapter too... ;)

Alex was shocked as Lena slowly put down the femur on the table again then slowly raised her hands in the air to put them behind her head. Siobhan cuffed her and read her her rights then she frisked Lena to be sure she wasn’t concealing any weapons. Alex snapped out of it when Siobhan took Lena’s arm to escort her outside.

“Wait!”

“Stay out of it, Danvers,” Siobhan warned. “I know what I’m doing.”

“Not like this, Siobhan. Trust me!”

Alex got closer to Lena.

“Trust me,” she repeated.

Alex uncuffed Lena and made Siobhan shut up with just a look. She ordered the officers to go wait by their car. They exchanged a look then left. Kara entered the lab and saw them.

“Lena, I would… What’s going on here, Alex?” she almost yelled.

“Shhh! I don’t know what’s going on but I’m trying to handle the situation! And you’re not helping by yelling! Come with us or stay out of the way but do it quietly!” Alex ordered.

The four women exited Lena’s lab and walked to the underground parking. Alex and Kara were each holding one of Lena’s arms and Siobhan walked at the back. A few people threw curious looks at them but nobody said anything. Once they reached the car, Alex put the cuffs back and helped Lena sit on the back seat. As the car left with the officers, Siobhan pounced.

“Why did you do that?”

“Because I wanted to at least save her from that humiliation. Her life has become a circus once again and it was all I could do for her right now. You should have told me that you intended to arrest her!”

“You two are too close and it altered your judgement and your abilities as an investigator. Do you think I acted without thinking about the consequences? I checked with assistant director Lord before I went to see a judge for the arrest and the search warrants. Both AD Lord and the judge agreed there was enough evidence against Lena to charge her without a confession. And they both agreed that you shouldn’t know beforehand because we didn’t want to risk you helping her run away or help her in any other way. Like it or not, I’m in charge of this investigation and I just arrested a dangerous criminal. I will let you observe the interrogation out of respect but that’s all you’ll get!”

Siobhan stormed off while Kara threw herself in Alex’s arms.

“It’s not possible, Alex! We have to do something! She didn’t kill Mercy!”

Alex hugged Kara very hard, wanting to believe her, but there were still doubts in her mind. Hadn’t she interrogated Lena a few minutes earlier?

“Kara, I have to go. I need to understand what just happened and control the situation before it gets worse. I want you to stay here and take care of the others. Brian will need your help and we need someone to calm Winn down and you’re the best to do that. I need you to hold down the fort while I help Lena, okay?”

Kara nodded against her neck. Alex hugged her again then let her go.

At the FBI headquarters, everyone was tensed and Alex felt as if they were all looking at her and whispering behind her back. She found Siobhan as she got out of an interrogation room.

“You are going to explain to me what’s going on. Where is Lena?”

Siobhan pointed the room behind her.

“In there. All she said since her arrest is the name and number of her lawyer. She knew it by heart as if she had been in that kind of situation before.”

Alex rolled her eyes.

“Because she has! Need I remind you that she was accused of helping her brother then cleared of all charges? Even if she’s the one who clued us in? Just because you have read more than the presentation page on the Institute’s website before you started working with us, doesn’t mean you’re right to charge Lena without evidence.”

“Stop treating me like an idiot, Danvers! I have enough evidence to send her in jail for the rest of her life and the next, I already told you. You better not forget it if you want to assist to the interrogation. For now you can go to the observation room but you’re forbidden to talk to your ex-partner. I have to go call her lawyer.”

Alex looked at Siobhan walk away then she entered the observation room next to the interrogation room. Through the one way mirror, she looked at Lena who seemed stoic and unfazed but Alex knew Lena well enough and she knew she was far from it. After a few minutes, Lena got as comfortable as she could with her wrists cuffed to the table, closed her eyes and fell asleep. Alex couldn’t help but smile. Contrary to Siobhan, she knew Lena’s lawyer and she knew she would take at least a couple of hours to arrive from Chicago. Lena was taking advantage of the situation as best as she could. Alex stayed where she was and mentally reviewed the evidence they had so far. She quickly concluded that they didn’t have a lot of solid evidence yet and that Siobhan was probably hiding things from her.

An hour later, the door of the interrogation room opened with a bang, making Alex jump and Lena wake up with a start. Siobhan let the lawyer in then closed the door behind her.

“Lucca! I’m surprised, I thought it would take you longer to arrive,” Lena said.

“You’re lucky, I was already in DC to leave Joseph with his father when they called me,” Lucca told Lena. “I was on my way to join Bianca in Saint-Lucia, what happened?”

Alex turned off the speaker that allowed listening to interrogations and left the room. Lena had the right to privacy when meeting with her lawyer. She went back to her office where several messages were waiting. The media had heard about Lena’s arrest and Mercy’s death and they wanted her comments. There was even a message from Mike who sounded furious. She didn’t call back anyone and concentrated on her paperwork which seemed to have doubled since the previous day.

Two hours later, she was back in the observation room. Siobhan and assistant-director Lord were facing Lena and her lawyer, Lucca Quinn. Lena was uncuffed and her fingers interlaced on the table.

“Where were you on the evening of May 15?” Siobhan asked.

“I left work around 6:30 p.m. and I went to dinner at Café du Parc with an old acquaintance until around 11 then I went home and I went to bed. I woke up at 4:30 a.m. to get to work as usual,” Lena said with the tone she used when she was testifying in court.

“Can you identify the person you had dinner with?” Siobhan continued.

Lena looked at Lucca who nodded.

“Mercy Graves, my brother Lex’s former fiancée.”

Alex cringed. This was bad.

“Can anyone confirm that you were at home between 11 p.m. and 4:30 a.m.?”

“Nothing else than the security cameras in my building.”

Siobhan took a note in the file in front of her then continued her interrogation.

“What did you and Ms Graves talked about?”

Lena looked at Lucca again. Lucca whispered something in her ear, her mouth hidden by her hand. Lena considered for a moment before she answered the question.

“She told me she wanted to start the proceedings to get my brother released. She said she had new evidence that would prove he was innocent.”

In the other room, Alex groaned. Lena had just given the thread to make the noose. Siobhan showed a picture to Lena.

“Is this your car?”

Lena looked closely.

“If it’s not, it’s the same model. A second generation Porsche Cayenne,” Lena stated.

Siobhan seemed pleased. She took a big evidence bag containing a pair of boots and placed it on the table.

“Do you recognize these boots?”

Lena examined them for a moment.

“Yes, these are my old boots that I threw away last week since the new ones that I had ordered arrived. The right boot has a crack in the sole and they were starting to get uncomfortable.”

_‘Are you going to shut the hell up?’_ Alex almost yelled. Why wasn’t Lucca doing her job?

“One last question, Dr Luthor. How did Senator William Dey die?”

Lena frowned.

“He killed himself last month. He swallowed nitroglycerin pills. You think it has to do with Mercy’s death?”

Siobhan closed the file on the table.

“I think it has everything to do with Mercy Graves’ death. A death that you meticulously orchestrated during dinner after she told you that not only was she going to get your brother released but that they got married two months ago!”

“What? That’s impossible!” Lena yelled.

“And yet, I have a copy of the marriage certificate right here if you want to see it. The news enraged you so much that night that you decided to get rid of Mercy. You went to see her at the hotel’s bar after dinner and you offered her a glass of whisky. You added the remaining nitroglycerin pills in Dey’s case in her glass, you brought her back to her room when she started to feel woozy and you watched her die. Then, you placed her body in the trunk of your car and you drove to Bethesda where you left the body in a remote area. You bashed Mercy’s skull with a rock to be sure that no one would be able to identify her. You were wearing your crime scene boots because it rained so much in the last few days and nobody would question mud on your boots since you always wear them on crime scenes. We have DNA evidence on the body and on the crime scene placing you there. You had means, motive and opportunity. You couldn’t stand the idea that your brother could be released from jail and that’s why you killed his wife!”

Siobhan had delivered her speech with passion and assurance. Alex had seen Lena’s face grow cold and closed off. She opened her mouth to protest but Lucca stopped her.

“I demand that all of your evidences be reviewed by an independent lab and I hope that you’re not too attached to your job because I’ll have your badge for this!” she stated.

“I want to speak with agent Danvers,” Lena requested firmly.

“Agent Alexandra Danvers is not assigned to this investigation anymore,” Lord said. “The only people you will talk to are the prison guards until your trial. And you even have your own cell waiting for you,” he added.

Lucca turned to Lena.

“Don’t do anything stupid. Trust me. I’ll get you out of there,” she promised.

Alex had had enough. She left the observation room and when to her office where she got her things then left. She drove around aimlessly for hours and only stopped when she was in front of Sam’s building. Sam was very surprised when she opened the door.

“Alex? Are you okay? What’s going on?”

“I… I didn’t know where to go,” Alex admitted as she dried a tear.

She hadn’t realized she was crying until now. Sam let her in and led her to the couch before she went to ask Ruby to stay in her room. She came back and sat on the couch next to Alex and took her hand in hers.

“What happened?”

“I… I went to the Institute this morning, I wanted to ask Lena about Mercy and we got a bit into an argument so I left but then Siobhan came and she arrested Lena and accused her of murder and Lena might as well confessed with all that she said in interrogation and I just can’t believe that she would do such a thing!” Alex said.

“You know… love makes people blind,” Sam replied softly. “The fact that you’re in love with her may have affected your judgement.”

Alex felt as if she had been punched in the stomach.

“What?”

Sam gave her a reassuring smile.

“You hadn’t realized that you’re in love with Lena?”

“I’m not in love with Lena, I’m in love with you!”

Everything went quiet.

Alex wanted to disappear. She had done the _one_ thing she had promised herself she wouldn’t do. Her day hadn’t been bad enough already, she would have to explain and apologize about her confession. She opened her mouth to talk but Sam’s lips on hers stopped her. Alex tensed against Sam for a second, then her brain finally caught up and she kissed Sam back with everything she had. Her whole being was set on fire and she felt herself warming up as if she had been set in ice for so long. She put her hands on Sam’s back and brought her closer.

Alex kissed Sam over and over, slowly bringing her to lie on top of her on the couch. Alex got lost in the moment, the feeling of Sam’s body against her own better than she had imagined. Kissing Sam felt so right, she never wanted it to stop. She let her hands naturally follow Sam’s back to her butt which she grabbed. It seemed to electrify Sam who jumped off her, almost falling to the ground. She was out of breath and her hair was all messed up as were her clothes.

“Hold… hold on… need to stop… and… and _think_!”

Alex felt horrible. Of course Sam thought it was a mistake. She got off the couch and ran for the door.

“Alex! Alex wait!”

She didn’t want to wait. She didn’t want to hear that the kiss had been a mistake, that Sam saw her as a good friend but nothing more. She had already been through it at sixteen with her best friend Vicky, she didn’t need to go through it again. She went to her car and drove off, not seeing Sam running after her car. She ignored her phone and drove home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know, not cool to end a chapter like that. This was not where the chapter ended in the first draft, but with editing and adding more stuff I decided "why not?". See you next week to know what Alex and Sam will do after that kiss...


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Here's chapter 6, which is much longer than chapter 5 but (I hope) not less pact with emotions! Let's go see how Alex is dealing with that kiss...

She needed a drink. To hell with her promise, she needed her brain to stop and not think for five minutes. She stopped at the liquor store to get a bottle of scotch then went home. She was surprised to find her sister settled in her kitchen, typing furiously on her laptop.

“What are you doing?” Alex asked, dumbfounded to see her sister.

“What are _you_ doing, Alex?” Kara said when she saw the bottle of scotch which she forcefully took away. “You promised mom! Lena is being accused of murder and all you can think about is drinking?”

Alex saw red.

“I lost it okay? It’s all too much, Kara, with Lena and... I can’t… I just lost it!”

“Lena can’t afford for us to lose it! We’re supposed to find it! You know she didn’t kill Mercy Graves, now help me prove it!”

Alex took several deep breaths to calm down. Knowing that Kara was never going to let her touch the bottle of scotch, she went for the next best thing and grabbed a spoon and the tube of Rocky Road from the freezer. She ate a huge spoonful of ice cream and barely winced when the brain freeze hit but it seemed to reboot her.

“I’m off the case, Kara. I can’t help Lena. And I’m pretty sure the whole team is off the case too.”

Kara got up and went to get a donut from the box Alex hadn’t notice on her counter and ate half of it in one bite before she sat back.

“Since when being off the case has stopped us? What happened to Danvers sister yes we can, if you can’t do it Danvers can?”

Alex sighed.

“Kara, this isn’t game night! There are a lot of things at stakes.”

Kara ate the other half of her donut.

“The first of which is a woman’s life. An innocent woman. She didn’t do it, Alex. You know Lena better than this.”

Alex went to put the ice cream in the freezer and the spoon in the sink before sitting opposite her sister.

“I believe we’re all capable of murder given the right circumstances and the evidence against Lena is very strong, Kara. I don’t know how we’ll prove that she didn’t kill Mercy Graves. Siobhan has a pretty solid case with everything Lena said in interrogation.”

Kara shook her head.

“Her case is circumstantial at best. And too neat. Think, Alex. It was premeditated. And I don’t think that Lena had enough time to plan all this between her dinner with Mercy and the time of death. But Siobhan doesn’t know that because she doesn’t know Lena like we do and she wants to impress so she went for the kill before getting all the evidence.”

“How do you know so much about the case that Siobhan has built?” Alex asked.

“I hacked her computer”, Kara said casually. “And I was in the middle of hacking the security camera from Lena’s building when you arrived.”

Alex opened her mouth to chastise her sister about her hacking when the doorbell rang. Intrigued and worried that it could be her boss, she went to answer.

“Sam? What are you doing here? How did you get here so quickly? Where’s Ruby?”

Sam seemed nervous but determined.

“Can we talk?” she asked nervously. “In private?” she added when she saw Kara.

Alex took one look at her sister who was back at her typing, ignoring them, then nodded.

“Let’s go to my car, nobody will hear us there.”

Once they were settled in Alex’s car, facing each other, Sam started to talk.

“I left Ruby with Peggy then I took my emergency money and I took a cab to come here. I had to talk to you and you didn’t answer your phone or my texts. I’ve seen so many situations festering because both parties were too scared to talk. And even though I’m scared shitless right now, I had to tell you that it wasn’t a mistake. I’ve been wanting to kiss you for… I don’t know how long exactly but it’s been a while.”

Alex stayed quiet as she let the information sink in and Sam took a deep breath.

“I was so sure that you were in love with Lena that I convinced myself to stay quiet about how I feel. Having you as a friend was better than not having you at all. I thought that, given time, I would have gotten my crush under control and that I would have been happy for you and Lena when you would have gotten together. But then you told me that you weren’t in love with Lena, that you were in love with me… I lost control and I kissed you. It wasn’t a mistake. It was better than I dreamed about. I know that right now is not the right time, you have to save Lena from spending the rest of her life in jail and you don’t need me as a distraction. But when you’re done with that, I want us to have a real conversation. I’m gonna go now that I’m done baring my soul.”

Sam tried to open her door but Alex was quicker to lock it.

“Alex…”

“I need something before you leave.”

Sam remained with her back to Alex.

“Sam, please look at me.”

Sam turned around to look at the woman who had stolen her heart.

“You’re right, our timing sucks. But I can’t let you leave without this.”

She captured Sam’s lips with her own. It felt even better than the first kiss they had shared and Sam only took a second before kissing her back. This time the kiss ended naturally and both women smiled at each other.

“I have to go back to Ruby,” Sam said reluctantly.

“I can drive you back.”

“No you can’t, you have to be a hero and save your friend. But when you’re done? We’ll talk.”

“Are you sure? I can call a cab and you can repay me with your Susie pancakes,” Alex offered.

Sam giggled.

“It’s crêpe Suzette and you know it. And I’m sure. The ride will give me time to think about you and what to tell Ruby when I get home. I’ll see you soon, agent Danvers. Be careful.”

Sam gave her a quick peck on the lip then Alex unlocked the door and Sam left. Back inside, Kara was hanging up her phone as Alex walked in.

“Everything okay?” Kara asked as she polished up another donut.

“Everything’s fine. Who was on the phone?”

“That was Lucca Quinn, Lena told her to call me for help. She managed to get the team form S.T.A.R. Labs to come in and review our findings and make sure that we didn’t tamper the evidence to help Lena in any way.”

“Which you are with the security camera footage,” Alex pointed.

“I’m not tampering with it, I just got to it first! Cisco may be good but I was tutored by Felicity so I’m better! But the images are conveniently corrupted so it’s going to take a few hours before I get anything without the computer in my lab. I also got a copy of everyone’s reports before we had to surrender the evidence and were kicked out of our labs. Winn’s pissed about it by the way.”

Alex sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose.

“When is Winn not mad at something anyway? Kara, you do realize that what you’re doing is illegal and that I could arrest you?”

Kara waved her concerns off.

“I know but can you wait until after I save Lena from her worst nightmare? Lucca said that Lena has been formally accused of Mercy’s murder and she has been sent to the Correctional Treatment Facility without bail. She’s going to spend the night in prison and probably the rest of her life if I don’t get her out of there! And I will get her out! You and everybody else may all believe that she’s guilty but I will die trying to prove that she’s innocent!”

Kara’s voice broke on the last word and Alex hugged her tight. Kara refused to cry but she latched on Alex like a drowning woman.

“I can’t lose her Alex. She’s my best friend, I can’t let her down. Will you help me?”

Alex thought about her career for a moment then nodded. Even if she had treated Lena like a suspect several hours before, she owed it to her friend and partner to help her. Had the situation been reversed, Alex knew that Lena would do everything she could to prove her innocence. And something felt wrong with Siobhan’s investigation.

“I’ll help you. Danvers sisters against the world, right? And I don’t believe that she’s guilty. Some things don’t add up. But right now, I need food cause I’m running on fumes and I can’t think on an empty stomach.”

Kara removed herself from her sister’s embrace and took deep calming breaths. She needed to get her focus back.

“I’ve ordered pizza and potstickers while you were talking with Sam. It should be here any minute now.”

Alex gave her a little smile.

“Excellent. I’ll set up the machine to make coffee in an hour. Something tells me we’ll need it.”

“And I’ll take care of your bottle of scotch. You’re stronger than you think, sis.”

Alex sighed and passed a hand through her hair.

“In my defense, I had a pretty chaotic day. Get rid of it but don’t waste it. You should drink it with someone you care about.”

Kara left with the bottle and Alex took care of the coffee. She then retrieved her phone from her jacket and looked at her missed messages. She hadn’t looked at the device since Siobhan had been interrogating Lena, ignoring the numerous calls and text messages. She had dozens of texts and almost as much missed calls. She started with Sam’s texts, the most recent one informing her that she was on her way home. Alex texted her back then listened to the messages. Jones wanted her in his office first thing in the morning. Great. This was a nightmare. The next message was from a reporter, then the next three were as well. She erased them all before they finished playing. Exasperated, she almost threw her phone when Kara came back with the food and a few people.

As soon as they got inside, Winn and Brian placed their laptops on the kitchen table next to Kara’s while Cat and Nia, Lena’s newest student, set up shop in the living room and Kara started to distribute the food to everyone. It was pure chaos and Alex definitely felt a headache starting.

“What the hell is this, Kara? You invited them over? This is a clandestine and probably illegal murder investigation! Not game night!”

Kara shoved a pizza box in Nia’s hands, grabbed Alex by the arm and pulled her downstairs to the home gym.

“They just showed up, okay? And I’m glad they did because I know I’m good but I can’t do it alone. Oh and I already lectured them about the illegal stuff and they all volunteered to help so spare us your big high moral speech. We’ll need all the help we can get to work against the clock and against the FBI.”

Alex sighed. Arguing would be a waste of time. If those big brains wanted to risk jail to help Lena, she wasn’t going to stop them.

“Fine! You’re in charge. Now let me get some food while there is still some.”

They all worked as best they could without their labs. Brian, Nia and Cat were analyzing the body while Winn was reviewing the carpet fibers for the car and the hotel room and Kara still waited for her computer program to clear the video from the security camera she looked at the traffic cams, trying to find Lena’s car or one similar near the hotel and near the dumping site.

Alex went to her home office to review Siobhan’s case against Lena. Things didn’t add up. At least now she had the confirmation she had seek in the morning, Lena had been the one eating with Mercy on the evening of her death. She would have to check the security footage to confirm that Lena really had left at the time she had said and she would have to go back to the hotel and interrogate people at the bar since either Siobhan hadn't done it or she was lying about what they had said.

Her head had gone from a dull ache to a full war by now and the pain pills she had taken hadn’t helped. She kept losing focus and thinking about Sam and smile like an idiot but thankfully no one saw her like that. She needed to have access to her work computer and she was pretty sure she wouldn’t have access in the middle of the night and that the IT team had probably removed the surveillance footage from her computer by now. To be honest, she needed to start this investigation back from the beginning and do everything herself, that way she was sure it was going to be done right and her friend wouldn’t end up in jail for something she didn’t do. Lena was one of the smartest people that Alex knew and if someone could get away with murder, it was her. She wouldn’t have been this sloppy.

At some point, they started to switch their work to get another point of view. Alex had the most trouble with Winn’s report on the fibers but she pulled through before going over the timeline of the murder again. It was around 2 a.m. that Kara had an epiphany.

“The boots! Who has the picture of the boot prints?”

Nia shuffled a few things and gave it to her.

“This one?”

“Yes. And the one of the mouldings, please.”

Cat handed it over. Kara compared the two pictures for several minutes while the others looked at her in silence.

“So… our first theory was that Mercy had been killed by a small man because of the size of the boots but then we switched out theory to a medium height woman because we found out that the victim had been poisoned and that statistically women are more efficient with poison, right?”

Everyone nodded.

“You are correct,” Brian said.

“Okay but what about the depth of the boot prints? With the soil and the fact that it had rained the day before… let’s suppose for a second that Lena did kill Mercy, would their combined weight be enough to leave boot prints this deep given what we know about the terrain?”

Winn quickly grabbed a pen and a piece of paper and wrote down the math as Brian shouted “No, it wouldn’t be!” having already done the calculations in his head.

Winn confirmed.

“Okay! And what about the length of the strides? Would that match with Lena holding Mercy’s body?” Kara continued.

Once again, Brian was faster than Winn but both men agreed that the math didn’t match the theory. Everyone congratulated Kara on her findings but Alex brought them back to Earth.

“Guys! All we’ve managed to do is prove what we already know. Lena didn’t kill Mercy. But we need something much more solid to get her released. Don’t forget that the other side has some very convincing evidence and Lena admitted some facts during interrogation.”

“We have proven more than Dr. Luthor’s innocence, agent Danvers,” Brian interjected. “We have proven that someone who weighs at least forty pounds more that Dr. Luthor is the culprit which could be either a man or a woman and that there is a conspiracy against her!”

Almost everyone looked at him with question marks in their eyes. Brian gave puppy eyes to Nia who smiled at him.

“He means that there is someone trying to frame Dr. Luthor. We need to find out who and why.”

Kara’s computer beeped and the young woman started to type.

“Finally! What do we have here… What time did Lena said she left the restaurant?”

“Around 11 p.m.,” Alex answered.

“That would make her arrive around 11:20… there she is. This is going to take a while guys. Do we still have coffee?”

“I’m on it,” Alex said.

She brought a refill to everyone and found Cat, Nia and Brian having a debate in the living room.

“But she apologized to him” Nia argued. “They seemed fine the last time we were forced to work with him, why would he want revenge now?”

“Because she humiliated him,” Cat said. “I know a lot of men who would hold a grudge against a woman. I’m telling you, we’re looking for someone who has a background in forensics and who knows Lena and has access to her.”

“I agree with you both,” Brian added. “That’s why I think we’re looking for The Daxamite.”

Cat laughed.

“Oh grow up Brain Box, the Daxamite is not real. We should look into Morgan Edge as a suspect.”

“Hey! Don’t call him that!” Nia yelled against the play on Brian’s name that he hated.

The other two started screaming and Alex had enough.

“Quiet! Cat, you’re a grown up woman who should know better that calling people names. Apologize to Brian then go take a breather in the kitchen or go home!”

Cat crossed her arms on her chest.

“Sorry.”

She stormed off to the kitchen, angrily mumbling against Alex.

“Now tell me who is Morgan Edge and why wouldn’t he be a good suspect?” Alex asked Nia.

“He’s the forensic podiatrist we worked with when you went to that exchange thingy in Metropolis four months ago,” Nia explained.

“The foot guy? The one Lena virtually destroyed in a paper about his work only being a part of forensic anthropology?”

Nia nodded.

“But as Miss Nal brilliantly explained, he’s no longer mad at Dr. Luthor and thus shouldn’t be considered as a possible suspect,” Brian said. “However, The Daxamite is a real threat to our safety,” he continued.

Alex sighed. She wasn’t paid enough to deal with all of this.

“Brian, the Daxamite was a character in a comic in the paper, he’s not real!”

Brian placed his hand on Alex’s shoulder.

“That’s why he’s such a threat! No one believes that he’s real! And that’s when he strikes!”

Alex looked at Nia.

“I don’t have time for this!”

The young woman took care of her colleague and Alex went back to the kitchen to check on their progress. Everyone had a gloomy face.

“What?”

“It’s Mike,” Kara whispered.

“Why would Mike call you at almost 3 in the morning?”

Kara shook her head.

“It’s Mike. The person who took Lena’s car and murder Mercy Graves. It’s Mike.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was the original ending place for chapter 5 before I decided to split it in two for drama reasons and because chapter 5 would have been very long. I hope you enjoyed it! :)


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Saturday is here at last! Let's go see how our protagonists are reacting to last chapter's reveal!

Alex looked at her sister in disbelief.

“What? It doesn’t make any sense!”

“Except it does,” Cat said. “And we have the images to prove it. As I told you earlier, we’re looking for someone with a background in forensics and Mike definitely qualifies. Plus he knows Lena, her habits, and he has access to her.”

“Show me what you found Kara,” Alex ordered.

Kara turned her computer and hit a few keys. The grainy video showed Lena parking her car in her reserved spaced at 11:23 p.m. before she got out and locked the doors. The security feed then picked her in the elevator up to her penthouse which she never left. In the parking lot, about an hour after Lena’s arrival, a tall figure wearing a black hoodie approached Lena’s car, unlocked it with a key and got inside before driving off.

“That’s it? Come on guys, just because it’s a tall person vaguely shaped like a man doesn’t mean it’s Mike!” Alex said.

Kara stayed quiet and started another video, this time of road surveillance. Alex watched in horror as she clearly saw Mike drive to Mercy Graves’ hotel then getting back to the car an hour later. The images followed him to Bethesda then back to Lena’s place. There were no doubts about it.

Alex was shaken. She had known Mike for years and while she didn’t considered him a friend, he was a colleague. She slowly sat on a chair while everybody looked at her to know what to do next. Nia and Brian joined them and quickly understood what was going on when they saw Mike’s picture on the computer screen.

“I have to talk to Jones. I’ve been ordered to his office tomorrow morning… in four hours... damn it! Okay… Here’s what we’re going to do. You will all go home, get some sleep and keep quiet about what we learned tonight. You guys have done your job, let me do mine. We all want Lena out of prison but it won’t happen if Mike isn’t apprehended because we slipped up.”

Everyone nodded.

“We’re all on administrative leave until everything is sorted with the FBI so we won’t run into him,” Cat said.

“Then, I suggest you all take the next few days to rest because we’re going to have some rough time. I’ll try to keep you in the loop as much as I can. Everybody okay?”

After a collective ‘yeah’ they all went to pack their things and left. Alex was beyond exhausted and she barely reacted when she noticed that Kara hadn’t left with the others.

“What happened today, Alex?

Alex started to wash the table and placed the chairs where they belong.

“I don’t know exactly but I intend to find out. Don’t worry, I’ll get to the bottom of this, I promise.”

“I know you will. I meant… with the scotch? Even after Maggie it never got so bad. Has it?” Kara softly questioned.

Alex stopped her cleaning.

“Let’s just say that I had a wild day and that I lost my way for a moment but you’ve kept me sober.”

Kara looked at her sister and crossed her arms on her chest, waiting for the rest.

“And I’m not ready to talk about it yet but when I am, you’ll be the first I talk to,” Alex tried to deflect.

Kara uncrossed her arms and hugged her sister.

“You mean I’ll be the second because the first will be Sam. I’m happy for you. She’s a good person,” she said in Alex’s ear.

Alex hugged her back.

“Thank you, Kara. Drive safely on your way home, okay?”

Kara put an end to the embrace.

“I’m not going home, I’m coming with you to see Jones.”

“What?”

“I found the evidences illegally, I will face the consequences of my actions.”

Alex was bit surprised.

“You do realize that you could be sent to jail?”

Kara sighed and went to sit on the couch in the living room. Alex came to sit next to her.

“You know you could be banned from working at the Institute if you go to jail,” Alex said softly.

“I know. I’ve been thinking a lot lately. About me and what I want and where I where I’m going. Truth is, as much as I like working with all of you and helping you put murderers behind bars, I was thinking of taking a year off, maybe more. Going to Europe at last and see the great masters’ work with my own eyes and just… absorb some beauty. I have some money saved so I wouldn’t be a starving artist. Of course going to jail would put a wrench in the project but as I said, I will face the consequences of my actions.”

Alex felt like an asshole. Her sister had needed her and she hadn’t been there for her.

“I’m sorry you’re feeling this way. I’ve been so wrapped up in my pain, I didn’t see that you needed me. I’m sorry, Kara. I promise we’ll figure this out.”

The sisters hugged again and it wasn’t long before Alex felt her eyes closing on their own.

“We don’t have a lot of time but we need to get some sleep. I’ll get you some clean sheets for the bed in the guest room, it’s been a while since I’ve changed them.”

Kara nodded. When Alex set her alarm for 6 a.m., she made a promise to herself. She wouldn’t let her family be destroyed.

Waking up not long after going to sleep was brutal. Alex took a quick shower then quietly went to see if Kara was still sleeping. The blonde was deeply buried in the covers and Alex was glad. She took Kara’s phone then deactivated the alarm set for 6:30 and placed the device into silent mode before putting it back. She closed the door then went to the kitchen where Kara’s laptop hadn’t been powered down.

Alex copied the evidence on a USB drive then left for work. As much as she wanted to stop by the diner and see Sam, she knew she didn’t have time for the welcomed distraction. She would have to get her caffeine boost from the sludge at the office. She drank her coffee in three gulps as she waited for assistant-director Jones to call her in his office. She felt like everyone that passed by was looking at her strangely but she couldn’t care less. She had no idea where Siobhan was, probably basking in the glory of her big arrest but as far as Alex was concerned, the young agent had made quite a mess and it would probably cost her her badge and a lot of money when Lena’s lawyer would be done with her.

The door of Jones’ office opened and Alex went in with her head up high. The tall man closed the door then went to sit behind his desk.

“Care to explain what the hell happened yesterday? I went to New York for two days and I come back to complete chaos, the threat of the biggest lawsuit the FBI has ever seen and one of our own accused of murder and thrown in jail based on shaky evidence!”

Alex told him everything that had happened the day before, from her own doubts that had brought her to question Lena to the arrest and accusation.

“Sir, I believe that Dr. Luthor should have been questioned as a person of interest but not as a suspect like she was. My partner deliberately kept me in the dark about her suspicions and I don’t even know how she convinced the judge to sign a warrant for the arrest,” Alex explained.

“Agent Smythe thought you were too close to Dr. Luthor from what I’ve been told.”

“And I don’t disagree with her logic but assistant-director Lord should have guided her through the investigation not rush it to get an arrest,” Alex protested.

Jones massaged his temples. The day was barely starting and he was already getting a tension headache. He got up and went to the coffee maker to prepare two cups of the strongest brew he had. He took a sip in one mug and gave the other to Alex who gladly took it. Jones went to sit back at his desk and looked at his agent.

“I think assistant-director Lord didn’t take too kindly to your refusal of a relationship with him. He saw an opportunity to get back at you yesterday and he took it.”

Alex almost spat out her coffee.

“What! That… that was over four years ago! Surely he… wow!”

Cat had been right. Some men could really hold a grudge against a woman. She took her time to put her thoughts in order.

“It would explain why the investigation, if you can call it that, was rushed and agent Smythe was pushed to bring the warrant to a judge… let me guess, Lockwood? He’s the one who signed the warrants, isn’t he?”

Jones tossed the document at her and confirmed her suspicions. Ben Lockwood had held a grudge against Lena since his days as a defense attorney. Alex frowned. Something didn’t feel right.

“Another opportunity? Sir, I don’t believe in coincidences. And with the anonymous tip I receive this morning, I believe there is a conspiracy against Dr. Luthor and maybe myself. That last part remains to be proven.”

Jones sat up straighter on his chair.

“What? What anonymous tip?”

Alex removed the USB drive from her pocket and gave it to him.

“This was slipped in my mailbox during the night. I already dusted it for prints and there was nothing. You should watch it, sir.”

Jones took the USB drive and raised an eyebrow at her.

“Right. A mysterious anonymous tip that has to do with computers.”

Alex remained neutral.

“Please, sir, watch it. It’s a game changer.”

While Jones looked at the videos, Alex did her best not to nod off on her chair. Even if she could be functional on little sleep, two hours was below her limit. She tried very hard not to think about Sam and their kiss. _Kisses_ her mind supplied. It was not the time nor the place but she couldn’t help wondering if they would be able to see each other and talk before their next class.

“Son of a bitch!”

Alex was pulled from her thoughts by the loud cursing.

“Yes sir. It was quite a shock. I think we should set a trap to get him here and get him to confess.”

“I agree. But we need more evidence. Go home, agent Danvers.”

“What?”

“Agent Smythe was right about one thing, you are too close to this to be impartial. I’m putting you on administrative leave, just like your team at the Institute, until we sort this out.”

Alex felt the anger rise in her stomach.

“But sir! Surely I’m uniquely qualified to catch him! I’ve worked with him for years, I know him!”

“You _thought_ you knew him. We all did. This investigation is going to be a massive PR disaster and you know it. I’ve been put in charge of this investigation and I promise I won’t let him get away with this. But we need to be smarter than him. I need to take this new evidence to Dr. West-Allen’s team at S.T.A.R. labs so they can verify it. And you need to go home.”

Alex didn’t calm down.

“You take this opportunity to rest and take care of your teammates. Trust me to do a fair investigation and to find solid evidence that will exonerate Dr. Luthor and keep Mike Matthews behind bars.”

Alex looked at him, unsure if she should trust him.

“I understand it’s not easy to relish control, especially since this one is personal. Let me ask you something. If you work this case, you find the evidence you need and the defense attorney manages to get this whole thing thrown out because you or your team were involved and Matthews walks free. Would you be ready to live with that?”

Alex lowered her head in acceptance.

“No. You’re right sir.”

“Go home, rest. When is the last time you took some time off that wasn’t due to an injury?”

Alex relaxed and gave him a little smile.

“Three years ago sir.”

“My point exactly. I will keep you in touch. In the meantime, please tell your team not to do anything stupid or rash like going after Matthews themselves.”

Alex got up to leave but a few questions remained unanswered.

“Sir? What going to happen to Siobhan? And when will Dr. Luthor be released from jail?”

Jones sighed deeply.

“I’m afraid Dr. Luthor will have to wait until we’ve arrested Mike Matthews. So maybe a few days. At least now we know he can’t go after her. As for agent Smythe… it’s part of the things I need to discuss with director Marsdin. Partnering with you was our last attempt to get her to fit in. I was hoping that your mentoring would have stirred her in the right direction but it would seem like her thirst for fame and glory was stronger than her taste for truth and justice. If it were up to me, I would let Ms Quinn get her badge. But you didn’t hear it from me.”

Alex had a little smile.

“Of course not, sir. And what about assistant-director Lord and Judge Lockwood?”

“I will look into it. Now go home, Alexandra, you look dead on your feet.”

Alex left and decided to stop by the diner before going home. Sam was busy with the many customers but her smile grew bigger and lit up her face when she saw Alex.

“Hey super agent Alex! What can I get you this morning?”

Alex took her time to look at her, long enough to make her blush, then looked at the menu.

“I’ll take two super special to go and I’ll take you and Ruby to dinner tonight?”

Sam winced a little

“It’s a school night. But you could come home and have dinner with us?” she asked, hopeful.

“Could I come pick you up then we could go get Ruby at school?”

It was Alex’s turn to blush. Sam chuckled.

“I’m off at four. Don’t be late! Two super special coming right up!”

While Alex waited for her food, she looked at the news displayed on the little TV in the corner next to the menu display. Thankfully it was muted but she recognized the reporter standing near the prison where Lena was. Andrea Rojas looked like she was having the time of her life. The media had been crazy since the news that Lena had been arrested had broken out the day before. The good Luthor had finally snapped and had killed someone. Alex scowled the looked away. She didn’t need to see her friend and partner trashed by the media. Sam saw her face the switched the TV to the cartoon channel.

“Vultures. Do you want coffee… No. You don’t need coffee, you need some sleep.”

Alex gave her a small smile.

“I know. I’m bringing the food home and I’m going to sleep after I eat. But I’ll be back at four to pick you up, I promise.”

Sam gave her two boxes to go and her biggest smile.

“I know you will. Sweet dreams. Drive safely.”

Alex paid and left a generous tip. At home, she was relieved to find Kara still deeply asleep. She placed her sister’s breakfast in the fridge then quickly ate her own before she put on her pyjama, slipped under the covers and, much to her dismay, fell asleep almost instantly. She was brutally awakened three hours later by a very panicked Kara who shook her.

“Alex! Alex wake up! Wake up, we’re super late for your meeting with your boss!” she yelled.

Alex barely stopped herself before she tackled her sister to the ground. She wasn’t used to rough awakenings anymore. She pulled the covers over her head and hugged a pillow.

“It’s okay, Kara, I already went to the meeting. I let you sleep. There’s some breakfast in the fridge for you. Lemme sleep.”

Kara pulled the covers back.

“You did what?”

Alex sat up, knowing that her naptime was over.

“You were exhausted so I let you sleep and I went to the meeting and gave AD Jones the evidence we found last night. And now I’m officially off the case and on administrative leave, just like my team, while assistant-director Jones investigates the director of L.I.S.K., assistant-director Lord and Judge Lockwood.”

Kara went pale.

“Lockwood? Ben Lockwood is involved?”

Alex nodded.

“He signed Lena’s arrest warrant.”

Kara sat on Alex’s bed.

“That’s not good. He’s a very bad man and he _hates_ Lena. Tell me everything that happened.”

While Kara ate her late breakfast, Alex got changed again then she made a conference call with the whole team and told everyone about her morning meeting. When all questions were answered, Alex saw it was almost time to leave to get Sam so she gently suggested to her sister to go home.

“Are you going to be okay, Kara?” Alex asked, worried that Kara had been mostly quiet during the conference call.

“Yeah. It’s just… Overwhelming. Mike is… was a friend, he was one of us. And I don’t understand why he would go to such length to hurt Lena. And I’m worried about her. This… This is her worst nightmare and there’s nothing I can do to help her and it’s frustrating. She’s my best friend, Alex and I can’t lose her.”

Alex wrapped Kara in a tight hug and rubbed her back.

“Kara, you’re the one who found the evidence to get her out of jail, that’s not nothing! You won’t lose her because she will get out and she’ll need you then. So go home, go eat a real meal and not one of those horrible power bars you like so much, and why don’t you go to the National Portrait Gallery or the National Gallery of art? Absorb some beauty like you said and recharge your batteries.”

Kara released her embrace on her sister and sniffed.

“I’d rather go see Lena. Tell her that we believe her and we haven’t given up on her and that the investigation is still going on.”

“Oh. I’m not sure they are ready for that yet. Might take a day or two.”

Kara lowered her head in defeat.

“Yeah. You’re probably right.”

“I just want you to take care of yourself okay? There’s nothing we can do for now but we will get her back, I promise.”

“Thanks Alex.”

Alex hugged her sister again and vowed to take better care of her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was more focused on the investigation and less on Alex and Sam but I promise I'll make it up to you with chapter 8, full of fluffy goodies. See you next week!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Chapter 8 already! As promise, it's full of fluffy fluff cheesy goodies! Thank you so much for the kudos, comments and follows, it really warms my heart that you like this story.

Alex arrived at the diner just as Sam was getting out.

"You look better than when I saw you this morning," Sam said as she got inside the car.

"Yeah, it's amazing what three hours of sleep and one of Jethro's super special breakfasts can do. How are you?"

Sam gave her a nervous smile as they drove to Ruby's school.

"I'm a wreck. I didn't sleep well, I kept trying to convince myself that yesterday really did happened and you really do have feelings for me. I… I never felt like this before and I don't want to mess it up. I haven't told Ruby and I don't want to tell her yet. I want to take this slow and see how it goes before I tell her. And now I'm rambling like a teenager. I'll shut up now."

Alex couldn't hide her smile.

"What?" Sam questioned.

"First of all, you're cute when you ramble. Second, you're not the only one who's nervous. But we don't have to be. We're just going to spend some time together and have dinner with your daughter, nothing we haven’t done before. Nothing to be nervous about, right?"

Sam nodded.

"Right."

They both visibly relaxed and stayed in quiet companionship until they reached Ruby's school. While Sam went to get her daughter from her after school activity, Alex received a selfie from Kara at the National Portrait Gallery.

_Thanks for the suggestion, I needed that._

She smiled as she put her phone back in her jacket pocket as the Arias women arrived. The teenager seemed a bit moody but Alex didn't comment. They passed in front of the grocery store and Alex asked Sam if they needed anything.

"We're good, thanks for asking. So, how's Lena doing?"

Alex signed while they waited at a red light.

"I don't know. I haven't been able to see her or talk to her since yesterday and I don't think I would be allowed to. She's tough, she'll get through this and I know her lawyer is probably brewing up a storm against the FBI. The whole team is on administrative leave, myself included."

"What? But you guys are the best to prove that she's innocent!" Sam protested.

Alex was pleased that Sam had faith in them.

"The squad is also the best to help Lena get away with murder," she explained.

"Wait a second, the Lena you keep talking about is Lena Luthor?" Ruby asked from the backseat.

Alex looked at her in the rearview mirror.

"Yeah. I guess I never mentioned her last name before. You've heard of her other than from me?"

Ruby's face lit up.

"She came to my class last year for career day. Did you know she's working on nanobots to cure cancer in her spare time? She's amazing!"

Sam had turned to look at her daughter as if she had grown a second head.

"And how do you know so much about her?" she asked, slightly amused.

"I read her unauthorised biography and online," the teenager admitted.

Alex suppressed a growl. That damn book had been a thorn in Lena's side for years.

"Oh! That's why you've been suddenly interested in computer science since last year! You want to be her!" Sam said with a knowing smile.

"I want to work with her, she's fascinating!" Ruby said with stars in her eyes.

Alex really wanted to tell her that she could arrange for her to meet her hero but she had no idea when Lena would be released from prison and in what state she would be when she got out. She stayed quiet but she promised herself to talk to Lena soon.

"Sure, she's amazing," Sam said. "Is she also the reason why you dismantled my laptop last summer?"

"I put it back together!" Ruby protested.

Alex listened to them bicker back and forth until they arrived. Ruby went to do her homework and Sam asked Alex to peel some potatoes while she cleaned the dishes from breakfast. While the potatoes cooked on the stove, Alex helped Sam with the laundry and cleaning the apartment. Sam then taught Alex how to make Shepherd's pie and Alex looked at her with fascination. Her hair pulled in a messy bun, she looked soft and Alex couldn't concentrate which didn't go unnoticed.

"...and then you add the… are you listening Alex?"

"I want to kiss you so bad right now," Alex whispered looking at Sam's lips.

They were standing side by side at the kitchen counter and Sam saw the desire in Alex's eyes. Before she could think about it, she leaned forward and captured Alex's lips with her own. Alex kissed her back then gently trapped her between herself and the counter. Sam wrapped her arms around Alex's shoulders and brought her closer while Alex put her hands on Sam's waist. They kissed for a few minutes then Alex slowly let her hands wander down to Sam's butt then she helped her sit on the counter. Sam spread her legs and brought Alex exactly where she needed her.

"Mom?"

A cold shower wouldn't have been more effective to split them apart. Alex sprung back as if pulled by a rope and Sam almost fell off the counter. Ruby had thankfully spoken from her room and hadn't seen them.

"Yeah baby?" Sam managed to answer despite her short breath.

"How long before we eat?"

Sam looked at the time as she got back on her feet.

"About half an hour, why?"

"I'll go shower then. Okay?"

"Yeah! Perfect!"

Sam waited until she heard the shower running before she looked at Alex who seemed mortified.

"I'm so sorry, Sam, I got carried away. Do you want me to go? We can talk another day. I should go."

Sam placed herself between Alex and the door.

"Alex, there's nothing to be sorry about. Nothing bad happened. We both got carried away. Please stay."

Alex ran a hand through her hair, messing it up.

"I'm still sorry. I'll… I'll set the table while you finish with the pie."

Sam nodded then went back to her dish. Once it was in the oven, she went to join Alex on the couch in the living room. Alex was deep in thoughts and barely reacted when Sam placed her leg on her thighs.

“What’s going on in that pretty head of yours?” Sam asked softly.

“I was thinking that we totally acted like horny teenagers caught by a parent,” Alex said as she started to massage Sam’s aching feet. “And that one day soon I’ll finish what I started,” she added while applying pressure on a sensitive spot on Sam’s foot.

Sam couldn’t stop the shiver from coming up her leg or the moan from escaping her lips. Proud of herself, Alex did the same move on Sam’s other foot.

“Alex!” Sam yelled.

This time, Alex heard the bathroom door open and she was ready when Ruby arrived.

“You guys okay? I heard mom screaming,” the teenager asked as she looked at them suspiciously. Sam was sprawled on the couch, her eyes closed and not moving. Alex showed Ruby what she was doing.

“I think I touched a sensitive spot, that’s why she yelled. Didn’t mean to scare you. Want me to braid your hair?”

Ruby’s face lit up.

“Yes please!”

Alex went to wash her hands and grab a hairbrush and a hair tie. Sam stayed quiet on the couch, listening to Alex and Ruby talk about computers while Alex French braided Ruby’s long brown locks.

After dinner, they watched a bit of TV and it didn’t take Ruby long to start nodding off against Alex’s shoulder.

“Time for bed, baby,” Sam said softly.

“Can Alex tuck me in?” Ruby asked.

The adults exchanged a look then Alex got up and followed Ruby to her room. Once Ruby was under the covers and all tucked in, Alex turned off the bedside lamp.

“Alex?” Ruby whispered.

“Yeah?”

“I’m glad you don’t avoid us anymore, I’ve missed you.”

Alex felt her heart break. She swallowed the lump in her throat and squared her shoulders.

“I’ve missed you too, kiddo. I’ll see you tomorrow night, sleep well.”

There was no answer and Alex quietly left the room. Back in the living room, Sam was waiting with two mugs of herbal tea and Alex was glad to have something to soothe her nerves. Sam noticed her turmoil and frowned.

“Are you okay? Did Ruby say something inappropriate?”

Alex sat on the couch and grabbed her mug before she took a sip of tea.

“She said she was glad that I wasn’t avoiding you guy anymore. And she’s right, I was avoiding you. And I’m not proud of it. It’s not the first time that I fall for a friend but it’s the first time that I fall this hard. As far as I knew, you weren’t into women so I didn’t want to tell you how I feel and ruin our friendship with awkwardness. So I tried to stay away but when everything… blew up yesterday I needed a place where I felt safe so I came here. And then you took me by surprise and kissed me. What made you believe that I was interested in Lena?”

Sam sat closer to her.

“Well… like Ruby said, you talk about her a lot and there’s always… I don’t know, some sort of sort of admiration of her that I mistook for a crush. And despite that, I fell for you because how could I not? You’re so wonderful and kind and drop dead gorgeous… Do you remember the first time you came to the diner?”

Alex shook her head.

“I do. I dropped an entire coffee pot when I saw you the first time. As if I had been struck by lightning.”

Alex couldn’t help but smile.

“After Ruby pointed out that you were becoming distant, I realized that she was right and that I didn’t care. Now that I know you, I need you in my life even if it’s just a little bit as a friend or as Lena’s girlfriend. Better to have you happy with someone else than not having you and all that jazz. But yesterday… when you said that you felt the same… I think I just… snapped and did something for me for once.”

She took a sip of tea.

“And today I had a lot of time to think about what I want.”

Alex was almost afraid to ask.

“What do you want, Sam?”

Sam had a huge smile.

“You.”

Alex felt a wave of warmth wash over her. She put her mug on the floor and took Sam’s hand in hers.

“And I want you. You and Ruby mean everything to me. Are you sure you want to be involved with a cop? The hours can be insane and it can be dangerous.”

Sam kissed Alex’s knuckles.

“I am. What about you? Do you want to be involved with a simple waitress who’s never been in a relationship and who has a teenage daughter who’s obsessed with computers?”

Alex pulled Sam to her and kissed her softly.

“You are many things Samantha Arias but simple isn’t one of them. And there is no shame in being a waitress. You can be a waitress and be a wonderful person. You can also be someone with a very prestigious job and be an asshole. Your job doesn’t define you or your worth.”

Sam kissed her hard.

“How did I get so lucky?” she said, staring in Alex’s eyes.

“I think I’m the lucky one.”

Alex brought Sam against her and started kissing her passionately. Sam’s lips were a drug and Alex was completely addicted. Alex’s hands found their way back to Sam’s waist then quickly under her t-shirt. Alex caressed the skin of Sam’s back and felt the goose bumps forming under her touch. Sam was moaning and pressing herself more against Alex. Alex slipped her tongue between Sam’s lips while slowly moving her hands up Sam’s back. Once she reached the clasp of Sam’s bra, it felt like an electric jolt and Sam pulled herself away from Alex.

“Stop! Wait!”

Alex removed her hands quickly. Sam got off the couch and put some order in her clothes and hair while trying to catch her breath.

“I’m sorry… I… I want to take things slow and this is definitely not slow. You have no idea how badly I want this, believe me. I’ve never done this and I want to do it right. I want to go on dates and get to know you even more before we… consume our relationship.”

Alex sat back on the couch and took some deep breaths.

“I don’t want to pressure you into anything that you’re not ready for.”

Sam went to sit back next to her but was careful to leave some space between them.

“I know, Alex. I don’t feel pressured at all. When we do this, I want to take my time with you and rock your world.”

Alex chuckled.

“Oh! Game on then!” She took back her mug and emptied it in one gulp. “So you’ve never been in a relationship?”

“I’ve had sex, obviously, and I went on blind dates a few times and I’ve had one night stands with both men and women but I’ve never been in a relationship no. None of them met Ruby. I had accepted that it wasn’t for me and then yesterday happened and now I’m open to possibilities.”

“In that case, I'm honored to be your first. I should go home, I have a first date to plan and definitely a cold shower to take. But before I leave, I have one very important question to ask you. Two in fact.”

Sam nodded.

“Do you want more children?” Alex asked solemnly. She wasn’t going to get caught in the same kind of relationship twice. “I know it’s early for that kind of question and you don’t need to answer right now but it’s a very important question for me.”

Sam didn’t hesitate and took Alex’s hand in hers.

“Yes. I’ve always believed that I would have at least another child.”

Alex felt herself relax considerably.

“In that case, do you want to be my girlfriend?”

“Yes. Will you be mine?”

Alex gave her answer with a chaste but deep kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this chapter has put a little sunshine in your day, there is more fluff coming in the future chapters and some drama too...


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Saturday! I hope you have a good day! This week we pick up the investigation and we have some Danvers sisters moments too. Can you believe that even if this story is completely written and ready to post (technically) I still find stuff to add and I STILL find typos! I hope you'll enjoy this chapter as I did writing it. :)

The next morning, Alex woke up at the same hour she usually did despite the fact that she had turned off her alarm. She went through her usual morning routine then sent a text to Sam wishing her a good day and one to her sister asking her to come over. Kara arrived forty-five minutes later, looking dishevelled, with bags under her eyes, her forearms covered in blue and yellow microdots. Alex did her best no to freak out when she saw her.

“What the hell, Kara? You look like shit!” She took a sniff at her sister’s clothes. “Have you been drinking?”

“What? Of course not! I smell like turpentine, I’ve been up all night painting, okay? Get off my back and get me some coffee, will you?” Kara grumbled before she sat at the kitchen table.

Alex filled up her favorite mug and gave it to her without a word. Kara took it then added a lot of sugar and milk before she drank half of it.

“Why did you come if you’re not in the mood? You should have gone to bed, I would have understood,” Alex said as she poured herself a cup too.

“I didn’t want to be alone,” Kara admitted softly.

“You didn’t want to call your mysterious companion?” Alex teased.

“Can we not talk about that?” Kara asked.

“Okay. How was your visit at the gallery last night? You must have been pretty inspired if you painted all night!” Alex tried.

“Can we not talk about that either?”

Alex bit her tongue not to snap. She could see that Kara was not in a good place but she wasn’t sure how to handle it.

“So I’ve been thinking and since I’m stuck here, how about you help me repaint the house? The basement could use a coat or two, make the place more joyful and maybe you could paint a mural on the wall the treadmill is facing? It would be more enjoyable to watch that than plain white. What do you say?”

The offer seemed to peak Kara’s interest.

“Would I have complete creative freedom for this mural? I could paint a giant Carebear oooh or a Kraken!”

At that point, Alex would have gladly let her paint rat poop if it helped her get out of her foul mood.

“Complete creative freedom. Just nothing graphic, okay?”

“I promise. I need to get my brushes and some paint.”

“How about you go lay down for a nap and I’ll go to the hardware store and get what we need to prep the rooms and a sampler thingy so you can help me chose the colors for the rest of the house and then we’ll go get something to eat and the paint and your brushes and everything you need.”

Kara looked at her sister in disbelief.

“You’re serious? You really want to repaint the whole place?”

“Yeah! How long have you been pestering me to do it?”

“Since you bought the place and paint everything white. Are you sure you’re doing this for you and not for me?”

“I’m doing this for me. I’ve been thinking about doing it for a while now but I never had the time. Now I do.”

“If you’re sure then let’s do this!”

Alex made sure to go to a hardware store that was very far from her house and took her time so that Kara could sleep as long as possible. It had taken a bit of convincing since Kara wanted to sketch ideas for the mural right away but Alex had insisted she go lay down and within five minutes of her head hitting the pillow, Kara was out like a light. On her way to the store, Alex called Lucca to see if she could arrange a visit to Lena for her and Kara but the lawyer told her that she was the only one Lena had agreed to see. Disappointed but not surprised, Alex decided not to tell Kara unless she had to.

When she arrived to her class that evening, Alex was sore but she was satisfied of the work she had accomplished. Ruby teased her endlessly until Sam offered their help on Sunday. Alex agreed and even discretely offered Sam a massage afterward to help with the soreness. Sam playfully hit her and told her to pay attention to the teacher.

The next few days were spent painting and Alex was glad that she had decided to take on this project. It kept her busy and her mind could rest. The members of the squad all came to help at one point or another and she made sure to send Brian to help Kara in the basement when he came. Kara had forbidden Alex to come downstairs, wanting to surprise her. She was working tirelessly on her mural and Alex was glad to be able to keep an eye on her even if she only saw her during lunch and dinner. Kara was quieter than usual but Alex didn’t push. She was putting the last touches in the guest bedroom when Kara came to get her.

“You have to close your eyes, okay?”

“I need to see where I’m going, Kara.”

“I will guide you, dummy! And you know the layout of your house. It’s like the trust exercise when you let yourself fall backward in someone’s arms.”

“Rah! Fine! Fine. But if I end up injured, you’re paying the bills!”

Alex closed her eyes and put her hands over them at Kara’s insistence. She let her sister lead her down the stairs, going down slowly one step at a time. Kara placed her gently to face the wall then removed her hands. Alex kept her eyes shut.

“Okay, you’re ready?”

“Yeah!”

“One! Two! Three! Surprise!”

Alex opened her eyes and was flabbergasted. Kara had painted a huge and majestic dragon spitting fire and it was magnificent.

“Woa! I… I’m speechless, Kara, it’s amazing! Look at the details! It’s insane! You’re insane! I love it so much!”

Kara was beaming.

“I’m glad you do. I almost did the kraken and then I thought about the dragon and how it would look so much cooler.”

“Even if a kraken would have been cool, you’re right, this is much cooler. I can’t believe you did this!”

“Thank for asking me to do it. It has kept my mind off things.”

Alex gave her a big hug.

“Come upstairs, I’ll need your help with the guest bedroom.”

Too exhausted to drive that evening, Kara stayed and Alex ordered some Chinese food. She knew she should be at her class but Kara needed her more. And she was quite exhausted after a week of painting. While they waited for their delivery, Alex sent Kara to take a shower while she cleaned up. Kara obeyed without a word. As Alex was washing the coffee pot, her cell phone rang. Expecting it to be Sam, she almost didn’t look at the ID and answered ‘Hey sexy’. Fortunately, her training kicked in at the last second and she answered properly to her boss who asked her to come at the office the next day and not to tell her team.

Kara got out of the shower just before the food arrived and the sisters ate quietly in front of the television watching Bewitched reruns. It was barely after eight when Alex sent Kara to bed while she got herself ready to run five miles on the treadmill. Her routine had been disrupted with the painting the house and the whole not coming in the basement thing and now she needed the endorphins. She lifted weights for over an hour then, equipped with her Bluetooth earpiece, she called Sam and happily listened to her while she ran. Sam told her about what they had seen during class and Alex felt a little less guilty for skipping class. The dragon seemed to agree with her and she knew had been right, looking at Kara’s mural was more enjoyable than a plain white wall. For once, she managed to fall asleep at a decent hour and slept well.

The next morning, Alex let Kara sleep again when she left to go to work. She disabled her alarm and put the phone on silent again. She was worried about Kara’s mental wellbeing and promised herself to have a good talk with her sister when she got back.

At the FBI headquarters, she went straight to observation room three, the one overseeing an interview room that could be used for interrogation when needed. She was surprised to see director Marsdin already in the room.

“Ma’am? I wasn’t aware that you’d be here.”

She hadn’t been told anything except to be there at 8 a.m. sharp.

“Agent Danvers, it’s nice to see you again. Since this is a delicate matter and quite a PR mess, I thought I would keep an eye on this one. Please, take a seat.”

Alex had no choice but to sit next to her boss’s boss. The older woman took a moment to observe her.

“How are you, Alex? May I call you Alex?”

Alex nodded.

“To be honest, ma'am, I’m worried about my team. The accusations and arrest of Dr. Luthor and the suspension and everything with Mike… I’m afraid they’re a little lost and they will need some help once we’ve sort this out.

Marsdin smiled.

“I’m glad that you’ve brought up the subject and I agree with you, that’s why I’ve already talked with Dr. Linda Martin and she will see you and your team before you’re allowed back on duty.”

Alex wanted to protest but she knew that Marsdin was right. And even if she didn’t want to go herself, her recent almost relapse was a clear sign that she needed a little help. There was some movement in the interview room and Marsdin got comfortable on her chair.

“I believe our guest has arrived. I would ask you to stay calm and remain here no matter what happens in the other room. Am I understood, agent Danvers?”

“Yes ma’am!” Alex stated.

In the interview room, Mike was escorted by a young agent. Alex felt the anger rise in her stomach but remained stoic. Mike sat on the single chair on one side of the table and the door of the room was closed. The two women observed him for the next fifteen minutes. He sat still on his chair as if he knew he was being watched. The door opened to let three people in. Alex recognized assistant director Joe West followed by her boss and, much to her surprise, her professor, Megan Morz. They all sat opposite Mike and AD West took the lead.

“This interview is recorded for the purpose of this investigation. I am FBI assistant director Joe West and I’m in charge of the investigation on the murder of Mercy Graves. I am seconded in this task by FBI assistant director John Jones and accompanied by Ms Megan Morz, professor at Georgetown. Ms Morz has been hired as a consultant in public relations. This is an interview for case 452-X5 with Mr. Mike Matthews regarding the arrest and accusation of Dr. Lena Luthor of the Luthor Institute for Scientific Knowledge. Mr. Matthews, you’re here on your own volition, correct?”

Mike cleared his throat.

“That is correct.”

“You have also waived your right to be represented by an attorney, correct?”

“Correct,” Mike confirmed.

West took a sip of water then started.

“Mr. Matthews, how long have you known Lena Luthor?”

“A little over eight years. She hired me to be the Director of the Luthor Institute for Scientific Knowledge, to take care of the business side, look for new partnerships, sponsoring, finances, while she stayed in the lab where she felt she belong.”

“And how was your relationship?”

“Cordial but strictly business. I would send her a weekly report on the state of business and she would email me if she had questions or schedule a meeting but it didn’t happen often. Her interests were in the lab as I said.”

“And how was her relationship with her brother?” As far as you can tell,” AD Jones asked.

“I think she loved him and she was very distraught when he killed all those innocent people. I don’t know if she had contacts with him since he’s been in jail but it’s possible.”

“You’re aware that this a delicate situation for the FBI,” West continued, taking a step back from the investigation. “I’ve been informed that there’s already seven cases where Dr. Luthor testified that have been brought up for retrial. And I’m afraid that’s just the beginning.”

Alex looked up at Marsdin.

“Is that true?”

Marsdin avoided looking at her.

“Unfortunately it is. Lawyers can be vicious and quite fast when they need to. Don’t worry about it, that’s for our lawyers to take care of.”

Alex sighed. Something else to worry about. Hopefully the demands would be denied when they exonerated Lena. Lost in her thoughts, she almost missed Mike’ answer.

“... embarrassing but I assure you that L.I.S.K. will be ready to help the FBI in any capacity we can. I’ve already reached out to find a new forensic anthropologist since Brian Dox hasn’t finished his thesis yet.”

“So the Institute will continue to exist even without Dr. Luthor?” Jones asked.

“Yes. After what happened to her brother, Dr. Luthor put in place a protocol in case she was incapacitated and there’s even a kidnapping clause. Basically, if Dr. Luthor can’t do her job, the director gets full power and any profit made by the scientific discoveries at the Institute is given to charity. The Luthor fortune would go in a trust controlled by the director to keep the Institute working.

Alex almost jumped off her chair. Mike had just given them a possible motive for his vendetta against Lena. But it still wasn’t enough to arrest him.

“The thing is, Mr. Matthews,” Megan Morz said, “the FBI isn’t really inclined to work with the Institute anymore. Having your most important member accused of murder is not good for your image or the FBI’s.”

Mike crossed his hands on the table.

“Then I would be sorry to see a five years relationship came to an end, especially such a fruitful one but I guess it’s for the high instances of the FBI to decide.”

“What about Dr. Luthor’s team?” West asked. “Do you think they’re involved in Mercy Graves’ murder or that they tried to help Dr. Luthor get away with murder?”

Mike thought for a moment.

“I believe they would have helped her had agent Danvers been in charge of the case. They’re all friends and they protect one another. You should also keep an eye on Kara Danvers, she’s best friend with Dr. Luthor and I wouldn’t put it pass her to falsify evidence to help her gal pal.”

Alex’s anger was ready to explode.

“Ma’am? I hope you know that he’s lying? I know my sister, she wouldn’t do what he said, even for me.”

This time, Marsdin didn’t avoid looking at her.

“We know, Alex. She wouldn’t be working these cases if she hadn’t passed our screening processes. Remember to stay calm. He’s trying to muddy the waters.”

West took a note in his file.

“We’ll look into her. Mr. Matthews, I have one more question before we let you go.”

He pulled a few pictures out of the file and placed them on the table.

“Can you explain what you were doing in Dr. Luthor’s parking garage at two in the morning on the night that Mercy Graves was killed?”

_‘Gotcha, son of a bitch_ ’ Alex thought.

Mike remained calm and looked at the pictures.

“I guess you’ve caught us. Dr. Luthor… Lena and I have a sexual relationship, mostly for stress relief on her part and companionship on mine. I mean, you’ve seen her, right? She wanted to keep it a secret so people wouldn’t think that I had the job because I’m sleeping with her. I went to see her that night but she told me she wanted to sleep so I went home.”

Alex almost laughed. Lena worked three jobs as a forensic anthropologist, a professor and a researcher with Dr. Spheer, she didn’t have time to date anyone and if she did, Alex knew that it wouldn’t be Mike and that Lena would tell her.

Jones pulled another picture from his file and continued.

“So you were mad at her because you couldn’t get some and took her car for a joy ride?” he asked. “And while you were out, you happened to run into Mercy Graves, a woman you knew had ties with Dr. Luthor and you decided to kill her? Cause, you see, I don’t think that’s what happened at all.”

Ms Morz got up and left the room. Alex was watching the interview turn into an interrogation with great delight as West got serious.

“I think you’re right, John. Because I went to interrogate Dr. Luthor yesterday and she didn’t say anything about a relationship with you but she did however mentioned her security system that she had installed four months ago. A video system that films every room in her apartment 24/7 and the images are send to a private very secured computer. She thought she was sleepwalking and moving objects and it turned out to be true. And since she was worried about her security giving the nature of her work, she kept it activated. Fortunately for her, we were able to confirm her alibi and she was indeed asleep at the time of the murder.”

Mike had a little laugh.

“You got fooled. Why didn’t she talk about that footage before? And who gave you the footage? Kara Danvers? I just told you she would do anything for her best friend. The images were faked. Probably like the pictures here.”

Alex could see that was playing it cool but he was starting to get nervous.

“Dr. Luthor didn’t trust agent Smythe to have her best interests at heart, that’s why she withheld information that could exonerate her. It was recovered by myself and authenticated by Cisco Ramon at S.T.A.R. Labs,” West said. “Great people at S.T.A.R. Labs, really,” he continued. “Do you know what else Cisco found? The footage of you getting in Dr. Luthor’s car and driving to the Willard hotel and then to Bethesda an hour later. And funny enough it had the same virus that he found in the video surveillance at Dr. Luthor’s building. You thought you had scrambled the video surveillance in the garage with your little virus but you underestimated the scientists and the geeks.”

“At this moment, Mr. Matthews, I have an obligation to read your Miranda Rights,” Jones said before he recited them. “Do you understand those rights?”

“Yes.”

“Do you still waive your right to legal consult?” Jones continued.

“Yes! I don’t need a damn lawyer, you guys are just fishing!” Mike said.

West chuckled.

“I’d say we’re digging more than we’re fishing, wouldn’t you agree, John?”

Jones nodded.

“You see Mr. Matthews, it’s really amazing what a forensic team can dig up. For example, they found out that while the boot prints we found on the scene did match Dr. Luthor’s old boots, the prints couldn’t have been made by her, even if she had been carrying Ms Graves. Something about weight distribution...” He checked his file for the correct information. “... ah! There it is! The boot prints were made by someone taller and heavier than Dr. Luthor. While I agree that this description fits a lot of people, myself included, it does fit you pretty well, especially when you add in Imra.”

Alex saw Mike’s expression turn from annoyance to rage.

“Leave her out of this,” he growled.

“But why? She’s the whole reason you’re here after all. Revenge for Imra’s murder. You remember the guy I told you about? Cisco? He’s very good with a computer. He looked you up and it didn’t take him long to find Imra. Your high school sweetheart. Your wife.”

Mike was doing his best to control himself.

“She has nothing to do with this!” he screamed.

“On the contrary, she has everything to do with Mercy Graves’ murder,” West said. “I think that in the last two months, you learned not only that Lex Luthor was a married man but he and his wife were working on getting Lex a new trial based on supposedly new evidence that proved he didn’t set the chemical bomb that killed 67 people ten years ago. Of course you couldn’t let it happen. Not only did Lex have something you’d lost but he was trying to escape the only place on Earth where he belongs! So you thought of a plan that would not only punish Mercy Graves for loving Lex, after all she must be insane for loving such a monster, but it would hurt Lex the same way he hurt you. And in the process, you would remove the only thing standing between you and the Luthor fortune, Lena Luthor. She was the perfect scapegoat for you but you had to plan everything meticulously so she and her team wouldn’t find the truth before the trap had sprung. So you worked on every little detail and when everything was perfect, you pounced. You took Dr. Luthor’s boots after she threw them and you wore them when you went to steal her car, drove to the Willard and you lured Mercy Graves into having a glass of whisky with you. You put the nitroglycerin left from Senator Dey’s case in her drink and you watched her as she died painfully. Then you brought her down to the car, you already had a story prepared in case you ran into someone but you got lucky and you loaded her in the trunk and drove to Bethesda to dump her. But watching Mercy die wasn’t enough. You had to make sure Lex would suffer and that Lena would take the fall. So you grabbed that rock and you smashed Mercy’s head with everything you had. And when you were done, you finally, _finally_ felt like justice had been served and that Imra had been avenged. Then you went to put Dr. Luthor’s car back, you uploaded your little computer virus into the surveillance system of both Dr. Luthor’s building and the Willard and you went home where you probably slept like a log for the first time in years! And yet, here we are. So even if you planned everything to the last detail, you underestimated the scientists and you got lucky that nobody saw you at the Willard, really.”

“It wasn’t luck!” Mike yelled as he sprung in his feet. “Nobody saw me at the Willard because two weeks before Mercy arrived in DC, I hacked the computer at the Willard and made sure her room would be next to a staircase so bringing her to Lena’s car would be easier to put her inside. It took me a year to get that virus working the way I needed to and be untraceable. It was pure preparation and not sheer dumb luck!” he spat.

Alex didn’t know if she should laugh or cry. Mike had just confessed which meant that Lena would be released soon and the damn reporters would be on her like vultures. She watched the man she had considered a friend being placed under arrest for premeditated murder. His bravado was gone and he looked defeated.

“You don’t understand, she deserved to die,” Mike tried to explain as he was cuffed. “Lex Luthor can’t be free, he killed Imra! He killed Imra and our baby!”

‘ _And that was his motivation all along_ ’ Alex thought. _‘What a mess._ ’

As Mike was brought outside of the interview room, Alex looked at Marsdin.

“How long before Dr. Luthor is released from jail?”

“Officially, not until tomorrow morning. Unofficially, let me make a call and you can go pick her up before the press shows up.”

They both got up.

“How long before my team and I are back on active duty, ma’am?” Alex asked.

She needed to get her mind busy over a new case and she knew that Brian and Winn would be the same.

“Not until Dr. Martin clears you all, I’m afraid,” Marsdin said. “She will be in touch shortly. Until then, I suggest you take the downtime to rest and to think about your career. Ms Morz wasn’t lying earlier when she said that the FBI wasn’t inclined to work with L.I.S.K. anymore. Dr. West-Allen’s team at S.T.A.R. Labs did remarkable work with this investigation and a new partnership might be beneficial. And I liked your idea of a joint program at Quantico for new agents and new forensic anthropologists. We’ll talk soon.”

Alex understood she was dismissed and left the room. Her head was so full, she felt it was going to explode. She seems to be suffering from more headaches recently. Then again her life had been quite a roller coaster lately. She went to her office to get some painkillers and was surprised to see her sister waiting for her, doodling in her travel pad that she kept in her purse.

“What are you doing here, Kara?”

Kara quietly closed her pad and turned to look at her sister.

“I’m coming with you to get Lena,” she stated.

Alex went to her desk and pulled a bottle of painkillers from a drawer then popped two pills which she swallowed with water form a half full bottle that had been on her desk for a few days and she grimaced at the stale taste but at least her headache would fade.

“How did you know she would be released today? Mike just confessed, I’m on my way to pick her up.”

Kara stared at her.

“Who do you think led Cisco to find out about Imra?”

“That was you?”

“When I was working on your mural, I got a bit restless and my mind wandered to Mike and I remembered that he mentioned he had been married when he flirted with me back when we started working together. So I started digging while I waited for the paint to dry and I anonymously sent everything I found to Cisco. It was only a matter of time before they would ask you to assist to the interrogation so I got lucky and checked your phone last night while you were in the bathroom and since you didn’t mention coming to work this morning, I had a feeling you’d try to stop me from coming with you so I put on a backup alarm and sure enough when I woke up this morning and you were gone without a word. I figured that Mike would probably be arrested today with all the evidence against him which meant that Lena could be released today and I want to come with you to get her.”

Alex crossed her arms on her chest.

“There’s no point to try to convince you to go back to my place and wait for us there?”

Kara mimicked her sister’s posture.

“I’m coming with you.”

Alex tossed her her keys.

“Fine, you drive, I need to call Lena’s lawyer.”

The sisters rode in silence, lost in their thoughts. They arrived a few minutes before Lucca and had to wait half an hour before they saw Lena slowly walk out the last gate. Her face was badly bruised and she limped as fast as she could and threw herself in Kara’s arms. Before Alex could realized what was going on, Lena was kissing Kara like there were no tomorrow. Kara kissed her back with as much passion and hugged her tight which ended the kiss in a cry of pain from Lena. She started to cry and pulled Kara as close as she could.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I do love you! I love you and I want everyone to know it! I promise I’ll change, just don’t leave me, please!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What I tried to do in this chapter is to replicate the fantastic scene in Brooklyn 99 season 5 episode 14 where Jake confronts the dentist. I'm not sure I managed it quite well but I'm still leaving it like this, apologies for the massive paragraph/monologue, I'll try to do better next time. 
> 
> The last bit was a scene I really was looking forward to while I was writing and that scene I'm proud of. As always, thank you for reading and I'll see you next week! :)


End file.
